Men's Basketball | 1/9/2013 3:48:00 PM
Game Notes
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McPherson, Kan. – For the first time since the 1982-83 team, the Bulldogs are win-less in the conference six games into the KCAC schedule; that team, coached by Roger Trimmell, won their seventh KCAC contest. The 2012-13 Bulldog squad will look to follow in suit as they take on the Coyotes of Kansas Wesleyan University on January 10th at 8:00 p.m. (CT) in the MaBee Arena in Salina, Kan.
The game will be broadcasted live in the McPherson area on 96.7 FM KBBE Mid-Kansas Radio and at Macbulldogs.com with Nick Gosnell on the call with former McPherson basketball coach Roger Trimmell doing the color commentary. Steve Sell will join the broadcast with halftime and postgame insight and analysis. You can also watch the game via ihigh.com/macbulldogs. All links to live game statistics, audio or video can be found at Macbulldogs.com
In their competition this past Saturday against the Falcons of Friends University, it was about as close of a half as there could be with neither team leading by more than four points. The Bulldogs seemed to control the pace of the first few minutes but had a difficult time increasing their advantage. A three-ball by McPherson gave them a 25-24 lead at halftime.
Friends appeared to be shot out of a cannon in the second period as they scored 13 unanswered points. MC battled back and pulled within four with 11 minutes remaining in the game; the Falcons didn’t let McPherson get any closer and pulled away, increasing their lead to double digits and maintaining their advantage for the rest of the game. When the clock hit 00:00, the Bulldogs had their sixth-straight defeat to KCAC opponents, losing 71-58 to Friends.
Mac ended the contest just 20-of-57 from the field and a lowly 2-of-15 from behind the arc; a 16-of-23 showing from the free throw line is something positive MC can take away from their offensive possessions. Friends only made three more shots than the Bulldogs and also took fewer attempts, putting their field goal percentage at 47.9 for the game; they made 18-of-28 from the charity stripe. Each team only turned the ball over 13 times and McPherson won the rebounding battle grabbing five more boards than Friends with 38.
Adam Bruner was the top scorer for McPherson with his 15 points on 4-of-11 shooting from the field and 6-of-8 from the stripe; he also had five assists and 10 rebounds for his first double-double of the year. Shivers and Mason Hewitt each put in 12 points; Shivers hit 4-of-13 from the field and 3-of-5 from the free throw line while Hewitt was 5-of-7 from the floor and a perfect 2-of-2 from the charity stripe. Devirous Johnson was close to his own double-double as he ended the game with eight points and eight rebounds.
Following their tussle with the Coyotes, McPherson will turn around and take on the Sterling College Warriors on January 12th at 5:00 p.m. (CT) in the McPherson Sport Center.
Scouting Kansas Wesleyan
The Coyotes started the year off with two wins but won just twice since, putting their record at 4-12 for the season. One of their two wins came last week against a struggling Bethel College team, notching KWU one place higher than McPherson in the conference standings. Kansas Wesleyan’s most recent game was against Sterling College and ended in a 99-91 loss.
Against the Warriors, both teams shot the ball very well as KWU made 46.1% of their attempts and were 14-of-20 from the charity stripe. SC hit on 33-of-67 including 11-of-26 from deep; they also attempted an eye popping 41 shots from the free throw line, making 22. Sterling was all over the glass, rebounding 52 balls, 18 on the offensive side. Each squad tallied 18 assists and Kansas Wesleyan committed the fewest turnovers with 11.
The high-scoring affair was anchored by nine total players in double-digits; there were five Coyotes reaching the 10-point mark, led by Canon Fields and Garret Pasold who each scored 22. Fields got his points on 8-of-19 shooting from the field and 5-of-9 from the stripe; Pasold made an electrifying 10-of-15 field goals and was 1-of-1 from the free throw line. Michael Johnson put in 14 points on 5-of-8 from the floor and a perfect 4-of-4 from the charity stripe. Both Brock Borovetz and Scott Weber scored double figures, each hitting 4-of-8 and one free throw for 12 and 11 points, respectively.
76.8 points, second highest in the conference, are recorded by KWU each time they hit the court but they allow a KCAC-low 84.5 points a contest; the Coyotes shoot the ball into the basket with 41.3% accuracy. They are making 7.4 three-point field goals a game and hit on 33.8 percent of their attempts. The team is converting 72.3% of their shots from the charity stripe, second highest in the conference and 18th in the NAIA, and average 35.6 rebounds per contest but give up a league-low 43.8 each game. Kansas Wesleyan’s 13.88 assists per game put them third in the KCAC; they are also third in total steals.
Fields is first in the conference in points scored per game with his 23.13 average which also places him sixth in the NAIA D-II; he has scored 370 points this season which is also sixth in the Nation. Fields is the team leader in rebounds as well, grabbing 8.38 boards per contest; he leads the squad in steals and assists per game with an NAIA 14th 2.56 and 13th 5.31, respectively. Borovetz scores 12.9 a game, putting him second on the team’s scoring list; Dane Brinker is third on that list with his 10.2 an outing.
KWU stays put at home for their next competition; they will face the Bethany College Swedes on January 12th.
