Bellevue, Neb. – In their second and final game of the Hampton Inn Thanksgiving Classic hosted by Bellevue University, the Bulldogs fought through the final buzzer against College of the Ozarks. Unfortunately, the final shot did not fall for McPherson, ending the game at 76-73 in favor of the nationally ranked Bobcats.
"I am very proud of this team," said Coach Swartzendruber. "We took a nationally ranked team to the wire. Certainly we are disappointed to lose but feel we took a step in the right direction."
The game started off very tight with the two teams trading baskets from the beginning. A 9-0 run by C of O put them ahead by double figures with just a few minutes remaining in the opening period. Mac ended the half on a run of their own but headed into the locker room down 42-33. McPherson made 13-of-36 from the floor with 4-of-14 going in from behind the arc; they converted all three of their foul shots. The Bobcats hit 18-of-47 of their field goals including 5-of-19 from range; the team went just 1-of-5 from the stripe. The 'Dogs struggled on the defensive glass as they allowed double-digit offensive boards to College of the Ozarks.
In the second half, MC jumped out and pulled the game within just a couple points but a mini-run by the Bobcats ended that and pushed the score margin back to double figures. McPherson's deficit hovered around 10 points for the next several minutes until a few big plays by the team's freshmen brought the score to 63-59 at the midway point of the half. After a bit of a scoring drought, the Bulldogs tied it up at 63-63 with just over five minutes remaining. College of the Ozarks stayed one bucket ahead of Mac the rest of the way through and hit their free throws down the stretch to hold on for the 76-73 win.
In the final period, McPherson made 16-of-37 field goals and 6-of-7 free throws; the 'Dogs cashed in on just 2-of-13 from distance. C of O connected on 12-of-34 from the floor with 3-of-14 three balls; they shot in 7-of-9 from the stripe.
Mac ended the night shooting in 29-of-73 from the field including just 22.2 percent from downtown, 6-of-27; the team saw 90% of their 10 free throws make their way through. The Bulldogs hauled in 46 rebounds, had 12 assists, eight turnovers, three steals, and two blocks. McPherson capitalized in points in the paint with 36 of their total being scored there.
Chris Crook once again led the team in scoring with his 18 points on 5-of-14 field goals with 2-of-5 from range; the junior also made all six free throws and had nine rebounds as well. Dee Roberts scored on 7-of-20 field goals with 2-of-9 from range; he ended the game with a team second best 16 points. Both Ramon Martinez and Ryan O'Hara each added in 11 points and seven rebounds; O'Hara also had a team-high four assists.
McPherson starts up KCAC play again on Thursday the 3rd as they travel to Salina, Kansas to take on the Kansas Wesleyan University Coyotes; start time for the JV game is set for 4:00 p.m. (CT) while the varsity is slated for and 8:00 tipoff.
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McPherson College is a Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference member school and a part of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
