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McPherson, Kan. – After dispatching Bethany College 104-101 on Thursday, McPherson College men's basketball is now set to take on the other BC of the conference in Bethel College; start time for the December 6th contest is set for 7:00 p.m. (CT) with junior varsity to start at 3:00.
The high-scoring Thursday night didn't start that way for McPherson as the team had trouble scoring, much like they have for the last several games. Bethany used a couple of runs to put themselves up 53-36 at halftime; the 'Dogs went oh-fer for the final three minutes of the half and counted just 15-of-41. BC shot very well in their home gym, making 19-of-30 from the floor which includes an impressive 7-of-10 from behind the arc.
Mac had a lot of chipping to do in the second period and clawed their way back into the game right from the get-go. The 'Dogs tied things up with just over a minute remaining and then took the lead on their next possession with just 28 seconds left. Two missed three balls by Bethany ended the game with McPherson winning 104-101. MC team scored 68 points in the second period on 20-of-37 field goals and 24-of-28 free throws while the Swedes were 16-of-40 from the floor and a rough 12-of-22 from the stripe.
The 'Dogs closed out the game shooting in 44.9% of their shot attempts, 35-of-78, with 6-of-19 from downtown dropping through; the team recorded an 80% free throw percentage, dropping in 28-of-35. Mac hauled in 52 rebounds, 12 more than their opponent, with 22 coming on the offensive side of the floor. They had an even 13 turnovers and assists while recording 10 steals and a pair of blocks. 48 points came in the paint, 27 were second-chance points, and 19 of their total came from bench players.
Darius Hill had a very solid showing for MC as he scored a game-high, and career-high, 31 points on 12-of-19 shooting; he was 7-of-7 from the charity stripe and also gobbled up 11 rebounds, five offensive. Henson bucketed 9-of-21 field goals and 4-of-8 free throws for his career-high 25 points. TJ Grant made his living at the line, making 9-of-10; the senior, who had a team-high six assists, also went 3-of-11 from the floor for a total of 16 points. Page Beeler and Ramon Martinez each added 10 points to the team's cause; Beeler grabbed nine rebounds to put him second on the team.
Ranked Bulldogs: Darius Hill moved up to 12th in the NAIA D-II in total rebounds with 96 and is 14th in boards per game at 9.6; he is 15th in offensive rebounds a night at 3.5. Mac sits ninth in offensive rebounds per contest at 14.9.
MC will host Kansas Wesleyan University on December 11th for their first home conference game of the season; start time is set for 8:00 p.m.
Scouting Bethel
After going 0-28 last season, Bethel made a coaching change and they entered KCAC-play at 6-5. On Thursday, the team lost 81-64 to Saint Mary, making it February 7th, 2013 since the Threshers' last conference win.
Things didn't start so well for BC as the Spires went up 10-0 in the first seven minutes; the first bucket for Bethel came with 12:59 showing on the clock. USM held their double-digit advantage for the entire first half and increased it to 20+ by the seven-minute mark. The Threshers got their deficit down to 16 at the break as they trailed 39-23.
In the second half, Saint Mary's lead hovered between 15-20 points for the first 10 minutes but then a mini-run by BC brought the score margin back to single figures with eight minutes to play. USM quickly took their advantage back to 20 a few minutes later and sailed to the 81-64 triumph.
Bethel scored on 25-of-55 field goals, 5-of-16 three balls, and 9-of-15 free throws. The team recorded just 24 rebounds compared to the 39 of the Spires. BC turned the ball over 14 times, had 12 assists, four blocks and three steals.
Leading the Threshers in scoring was Adam Arciniega who bucketed 8-of-19 from the field and 1-of-3 from the charity stripe for 18; the senior also led the team in rebounds with six. Jenson Kingsley was next on the team with his 16 on 4-of-9 from deep, 1-of-3 from two-point range and 2-of-2 from the foul line. Jacob Miller and Rodney Hill each added double-digits scoring from the bench; Miller made 5-of-7 field goals and 3-of-5 free throws for 13 points while Hill went 5-of-7 from the floor for his 10.
BC is scoring 72.5 points on average while allowing 73, making for some close contests; eight of the team's games have been decided by six points or less. The squad is making 44.3 percent from the floor and 38.2 from deep; they are converting on 64.8% from the free throw line. Bethel pulls down 35.9 rebounds a night while totaling 16.3 turnovers, 14.8 assists, 7.0 steals, and 3.6 blocks on average.
Arciniega is scoring 25 points a night to lead the team; he has bucketed 111 field goals in his team-high 379 minutes and also averages 7.7 rebounds per game. Arciniega is also the team leader in free throws made, 68-of-97, assists with 34, and steals with 23. Kingsley scores 14.3 points per contest and has made a team-high 43 three-point baskets. Jordan Huber adds in 8.8 points a contest. Kent Packard and Ryan Alford are the two big men for Bethel and have started nearly every game this season.
A pair of away contests await Bethel next week as they travel to Bethany College and Kansas Wesleyan University.
