Men's Basketball | 11/19/2011 9:24:00 PM
Box Score Box Score
McPherson, Kan. – Samson Shivers (Houston, Texas) keyed the Bulldog offense with seven of MC’s 11 points in the extra period, as the McPherson College men’s basketball team gutted out a 78-73 victory against Haskell Indian Nations University Saturday night at the McPherson Sport Center. The contest between the Bulldogs and Indians concluded the 2011 McPherson Classic.
With the win, the Bulldogs improve to 9-0, while Haskell falls to 5-4 on the young season.
McPherson trailed 67-65 with less than a minute in regulation following Brady Fairbanks’s fifth 3-pointer of the night for the Indians. A failed game tying attempt on MC’s next possession all but put the game out of reach until Haskell’s Byron Trujillo was called for an offense foul with 18 seconds remaining. With new life, Shivers heaved a contested 3-pointer that bounced off the rim and into the hands of
Jake Reinhardt (Walton, Kan.), who tipped the ball back into the basket to tie the score 67-67 with 0.4 seconds remaining on the clock. Haskell’s final attempt at a tip never happened as the Bulldogs knocked the inbounds pass away to send the game into overtime.
In the extra period, Shivers sparked a seven-point swing with his first 3-pointer of the night on MC’s opening possession. Haskell cut the lead to 74-70 at the foul line, but Shivers and
Kenny Berry, Jr. (Lee's Summit, Mo.) were perfect at the free throw line to seal the victory.
Aaron Frazier (McPherson, Kan.) led MC with 18 points, while
Jordan Crawford (McPherson, Kan.) totaled 16 points and seven rebounds. Shivers and Berry joined the aforementioned duo in double figures with 14 points and 10 points, respectively. Seven points of Shivers total came in the overtime.
Haskell took the early lead with a 28-10 run, including six 3-pointers, to open the first half. McPherson battled back to make it a 40-32 deficit at the half. The Bulldogs continued to chip away in the second period until eventually tying the game, 54-54, on an
Adam Bruner (McPherson, Kan.) off-balance layup with 10:57 remaining.
The Indians, however, answered on their next possession with a pair of free throws. McPherson tied the game three additional times before sending the contest into overtime.
As a team, McPherson shot 38.5 percent (25-of-65) from the floor, while converting 24-of-34 (70.6 percent) of attempts at the foul line. Defensively, the Bulldogs held Haskell to just a 37.7 percent (26-of-69) field goal percentage, while forcing 26 turnovers.
Fairbanks led the Indians with 27 points.
McPherson returns to action on Friday, Nov. 25 when they play Doan College at the Hastings Classic. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. (CT) in Hastings, Neb.
