Men's Basketball | 2/12/2013 10:29:00 AM
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McPherson, Kan. – With two games left in the KCAC regular season, the Bulldogs sit in the No. 8 spot of the conference standings. Two wins, and a little help from a couple of other teams, and Mac could bounce to fifth place. Two losses, and MC could be done for the season. The start of their final week begins in Sterling, Kansas where the SC Warriors await the ‘Dogs for an 8:00 p.m. (CT) tipoff on February 14th.
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
Mac is coming off a crucial victory against Kansas Wesleyan this past Saturday; both teams are 5-11 in the KCAC but the Bulldogs have taken down KWU twice, giving them the tiebreaker. In the February 9th matchup, the Coyotes held on to a slim lead from the get-go. Close to the midway point of the half, McPherson put a couple of baskets together and became the aggressors, leading by a small handful of points. The two teams went back and forth, trading the lead five times and having nine ties in the first 20 minutes. MC started to slow the Kansas Wesleyan offense in the waning minutes of the period and got up by double-digits; the ‘Dogs went into the locker room up 48-38.
The game’s tempo didn’t slow down in the least as the second half got underway. Mac quickly got up by 15 points but the ‘Yotes retaliated and got their deficit back to single figures a few minutes later. A 13-1 run by the Bulldogs up them on top by 20 points with 10 minutes to play. KWU continued to fight and got within 13 but could never get the score back to single-digits. McPherson was never in any danger of losing the contest late in the game, staying ahead by over 15 points for the final minutes. A few free throws and defensive stops gave the ‘Dogs the 92-76 victory.
MC closed out the competition nailing 31-of-71 field goals with 9-of-26 makes from behind the arc; they totaled a 70% free throw percentage, making 21-of-30. Shooting exactly as they did in the first half, Kansas Wesleyan ended the game hitting 34.2% from the field with 10 three-point buckets; 14-of-19 balls from the charity stripe found their way in. McPherson pulled down an incredible 52 rebounds while the Coyotes tallied 48. Mac recorded their second-most assists in a game with 18 while turning the ball over a season-low 10 times. The Bulldogs scored 46 of their points in the paint and outscored KWU 17-6 in bench points.
Sampson Shivers had a career night and also set a McPherson school record on Saturday; he was 10-of-23 from the floor, 6-of-15 from deep, and 11-of-13 from the foul line for 37 points while also totaling seven rebounds. Shivers’ 15 attempts from beyond the arc sets a MC record for most three-point attempts in a single game, breaking his own record of 14 which was set last season. Jake Reinhardt also had a career night with his 12 points and 16 rebounds, both setting career marks and giving him his third double-double of the year; he was 3-of-5 from the field and 6-of-6 from the stripe. Adam Bruner scored 16 points, placing him second on the team’s scoring list; he hit on 7-of-11 from the floor but struggled from the free throw line, making 2-of-7. Kyle Lakin led the team in assists with seven.
The Bulldogs will have their final home game of the year on Saturday, February 16 as they look for revenge against the Bethel College Threshers; game time is 7:00 p.m. (CT) with junior varsity getting underway at 3:00 p.m. The contest will be “Red Out” Night along with Senior Night so wear your McPherson red and support the seniors for their last home game as a Bulldog.
Scouting Sterling
The Warriors have been the surprise team of the year for KCAC men’s basketball. SC was picked fifth in the preseason poll but is currently sitting No. 2 in the conference standings. After a solid 7-2 showing the first time through the conference, including squeaking one out against Mac, Sterling has struggled a bit down the stretch in the second round of KCAC play as they are 5-2, losing two of their last three. A 77-70 win over Bethel College was the team’s most recent competition.
In the Saturday night matchup, SC improved their shooting percentage from their previous two games as they made 39.1 percent of their 69 shot attempts; they were 8-of-19 from long range but just 15-of-28 from the foul line. The Threshers cashed in on 23-of-68 from the floor with 8-of-22 three balls falling through the hoop; they also had a difficult time making free throws as only 16-of 30 were counted. There was an abundance of rebounds to be had in the contest; the Warriors grabbed 54 while Bethel came down with 49. Turnovers were relatively low as the two squads combined for 24 total with SC leading the way with 13; the Warriors made up for their errors with 14 assists.
Adam Brown was Sterling’s leading scorer as he bucketed 8-of-14 from the field and 5-of-11 from the charity stripe for 21 points; he also tallied 10 defensive rebounds and five off the offensive glass for his 12th double-double of the season. Braden Thompson came in from the bench and scored 14 points on 4-of-10 from the floor and a perfect 5-of-5 from the foul line; he was second on the team in rebounds with eight. Darius Alexander led the squad in assists with four and was the final Warrior to make it in to double figures with his 12 points; he hit 4-of-9 field goals and 1-of-2 free throws.
Sterling is scoring nearly 75 points per game and convert on 43.1% of their field goals; they have made 182 shots from deep this season, averaging 6.7 a contest while hitting 32.8 percent of the time. The free throw line has not been the team’s friend this year as they make a KCAC third worst 63.9% of their attempts from the stripe. 41.7 rebounds are tallied by SC each time they hit the court and they outrebound their foes by a conference-leading 4.4 a game. As a team, the Warriors turn the ball over roughly 15 times per contest while racking up 12.3 assists and 6.3 steals.
Raheem Odomes has been a huge player this season for Sterling, scoring a conference fourth best 15.3 points each time he touches the court while making over 50 percent of his field goals; he also leads the team in blocks with 16 recorded this season. Brown is next on the scoring totem-pole, grabbing 13.6 points a game while draining 58.8% from the floor; he hauls in 8.7 boards per contest to lead the Warriors. Eddie Adesodun buckets 11.4 points per game while Alexander scores 10.2 to round out SC’s double-digit point getters; both Adesodun and Alexander like to shoot from distance and have made 49 and 62 three pointers, respectively.
Bethany College will be the final regular season opponent for the Warriors; the two teams collide in Sterling on February 16th.
