Men's Basketball | 1/23/2013 11:01:00 PM
Box Score
McPherson, Kan. – Late in the game on Wednesday, much like they have the previous three games, McPherson College found themselves in a close contest. The difference between this game and their previous three competitions is that against Tabor, they came out on top, winning 77-71.
Mason Hewitt (Norwich, Kan.) led the way for Mac with his career-high 26 points.
Mac started the game out in front, something relatively new for the Bulldogs as they seem to be coming from behind in most of their games this season. MC held the advantage for most of the period, trailing only briefly when Tabor would make mini-runs; the largest lead for McPherson was nine points when the score was 19-10 midway through the half. A 41-33 score was on the scoreboard at halftime with the visiting Bulldogs ahead.
It seemed as if the Bulldogs could do no wrong in the shooting department as they bucketed 68% of their shots, making 17-of-25 from the field which included two from deep; they converted on 5-of-7 from the charity stripe in the first 20 minutes. Tabor hit on 13-of-29 with five from behind the arc; only 2-of-7 free throws fell for the Blue Jays. Hewitt led the half in scoring with his perfect 5-of-5 from the field and 2-of-2 from the stripe for 12 points.
As has been the case for just about every game this year, the competition picked up in the final 20 minutes of the contest. Within four minutes, TC had done away with McPherson’s lead and began to be the aggressors. The two squads traded baskets and momentum for most of the middle part of the period with neither getting up by more than a handful with the largest lead being four points. Mac saw themselves down by that margin with three minutes remaining but didn’t panic and in back-to-back-to-back possessions jumped out in front. They held the advantage for the final minute of action, making their free throws and forcing bad shots from Tabor. Four-straight free throws closed out the game for the Bulldogs as they won 77-71.
After their near brilliant first half, McPherson had a tough time duplicating their performance but came close as they made 41.9 percent of their field goals but were 0-of-5 from downtown; they drained 10-of-13 from the stripe including their final four. TC stayed right around their first half percentage, knocking in 48.3% of their attempts; they converted on 3-of-7 from behind the arc and 7-of-12 from the free throw line.
A season-high 53.6 field goal percentage was totaled by the Bulldogs in their victory; they put 30-of-56 through the basket from the floor and 15-of-20 from the charity stripe. The Blue Jays went 27-of-58 from the field with 50% of their 16 three balls finding the bottom of the net; a poor 47.4 free throw percentage was logged by TC. Mac ripped down 37 rebounds, 11 on the offensive end; they also tallied five blocks, tying their season-high.
After his perfect 5-of-5 first half, Hewitt made 6-of-8 with his two misses coming back-to-back in the opening minutes of the second period; he hit on all four of his free throws and grabbed five rebounds.
Adam Bruner (McPherson, Kan.) bucketed 7-of-13 from the field and 4-of-7 from the stripe for his 18 points.
Samson Shivers (Houston, Texas) scored 13 points, rounding out the double-digit point getters for MC.
Darius Hill (Kansas City, Kan.) snatched three offensive boards and eight total to lead the team; he also had seven points.
Chance LeBlanc led the Jays in points with his 15 coming on 6-of-15 from the field and 2-of-5 from the charity stripe. Nick Sauer scored the game’s first points for Tabor and ended with 10. The leading scorer and rebounder for TC, Ryan Chippeaux hauled in 11 rebounds but scored just eight points on 4-of-10 from the floor.
MC will look to rectify a loss earlier this season to Ottawa University on the 26
th of January. Junior varsity will play at 3:00 p.m. (CT) with the varsity squad taking the court at 7:00 p.m.
Make sure to follow Bulldog Nation on
Facebook (MCathletics) and
Twitter (@MAC_Bulldogs)
