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McPherson, Kan. – The McPherson College men's basketball team is still searching for their first win of-2016 and hopes it will come on January 20th when they host Bethel College in the Sport Center. The JV contest is set for a 4:00 p.m. (CT) start with the varsity men's game scheduled for 8:00.
Scouting McPherson
The 'Dogs are 6-15 this season and 2-9 in the KCAC with their wins coming against Bethel College in the second conference game of the season and Oklahoma Wesleyan University in the final league game before break. The team has lost four in a row, scoring 74 points in three of the four. Their latest competition came against Southwestern this past Saturday.
Last Time Out – It was a very back-and-forth game from the get-go; a total of 10 ties and 12 lead changes occurred in the 40-minute contest. For most of the opening period, SWC saw themselves out in front by a very slim margin, never more than a couple buckets; Mac's largest lead was one point. At the end of the first, the Moundbuilders led 40-38. The second half looked to belong to the Bulldogs as they stormed out and took the lead early and stayed out in front for the first eight minutes. However, a 17-5 run by Southwestern midway through the period gave them a 12-point lead with five to play. McPherson went cold from the field at the wrong time which allowed SWC to jump up by 17 with under two minutes on the clock. MC hit a couple shots late but fell 88-74. The 'Dogs connected on 24-of-52 for the game, 46.2 percent, with 8-of-18 from deep; they were 18-of-21 from the line. Mac tallied just 22 rebounds with one off the offensive glass; they tabbed 13 turnovers, 11 assists, four steals, and one block.
Chris Crook played a very nice game for MC, totaling 25 points on 7-of-11 field goals and 1-of-11 free throws; he also led the team in rebounds with seven. Dee Roberts returned to the lineup for the Bulldogs and scored 13 points, all coming in the first half; he was 4-of-8 from the floor including 3-of-5 from distance. Aaron Bachura also had a good showing, making 4-of-5 shots with three coming from deep for his 11 points.
ALL STATISTICS ARE FROM KCAC GAMES ONLY
Year at a Glance – McPherson is scoring 75.4 points each time out while giving up 82.6 to their opponents; their -7.3 scoring margin is last in the KCAC. The team scores on 41.6% from the floor with 33.5% falling in from behind the arc, fourth in the league; they are the top free throw shooting team in the conference at 78.1 percent. MC tallies a KCAC-worst 35.7 rebounds a game and hold a -7.7 rebounding margin. They log 10.6 assists, 5.5 steals, and 2.0 blocks a night.
Crook is scoring 19.2 points through his 11 conference games; he has made 63 field goals and a team-high 23 three balls. Roberts is putting in 15.0ppg and ranks second in three-point buckets with 21. Ramon Martinez tallies 12.1 points each time he hits the court and ranks second in total field goals with 51; he also tallies 5.9 boards a night.
Bulldogs in the National Rankings – Mac is sixth in the NAIA D-II in free throw percentage at 76.6%. Crook ranks 17th with his 86.1 free throw percentage.
McPherson will take on Ottawa University on the road this Saturday with the start time set for 5:00 p.m.
Scouting Bethel
After starting the season on a 10-game losing streak, the Threshers took down a pair of top-level KCAC teams. They've since gone 4-5 and sit at 6-15 on the year and hold a 4-6 conference record. Last week, BC nearly defeated KCAC No. 1 Tabor, losing 87-83 in overtime; they most recently played Oklahoma Wesleyan University and came away with an 88-73 win.
Last Time Out – Bethel led from the get-go, taking a quick 6-0 lead which reached 12 points before the 10-minute mark; the Thresher advantage peaked at 20 points and the team went into the locker room up 48-31. The BC lead stayed above 15 points most of the way until a 9-0 run by Oklahoma Wesleyan brought the score gap to nine points with five minutes to play. Bethel quickly responded and went on to win pretty handedly, 88-73. After shooting in 55% in the opening period, the Threshers ended the game at 48.4%, making 31-of-64 field goals including 12-of-26 from range, 46.2%; they struggled from the line, converting on just 14-of-27 free throws. The team grabbed 42 boards to go along with 17 assists, 14 steals, and 11 turnovers.
Five Bethel players hit double figures scoring and the team was led by Deven Goodwin who netted 7-of-11 from the floor and 7-of-9 from the line for 25 points; he also had seven steals and six assists. Jenson Kingsley made 5-of-10 three pointers for his 15 total. Nate Fort entered from the bench to score his 14 points; the forward made 6-of-8 from the field but just 2-of-7 from the charity stripe. Both Rayjon Craig and Chase Banister tallied 11 points for BC; Craig also had 10 rebounds for the game's lone double-double.
ALL STATISTICS ARE FROM KCAC GAMES ONLY
Year at a Glance – The Threshers tally 74.4 points a game, second to last in the league, and are giving up 79.9. They are at the bottom of the KCAC in field goal and free throw percentage at 39.1% and 62.1%, respectively; the team is 10th in three-point percentage as they watch just 30.7% fall through. Bethel is averaging a conference-high 43.5 rebounds a game and are second in rebounding margin at 3.5. They record a KCAC leading 8.4 steals each time out along with 12.5 assists and 1.3 blocks.
Craig is the leading scoring this year with his 14.9 average; he has made 55 total field goals and is the team's top rebounder at 10.8 a game. Goodwin is second at 13.2ppg; the guard is the top free throw shooter with 29 makes and is the only key contributor to shoot over 70% from the stripe. Both Fort and Austin Mitchell are scoring nine points a game for the Threshers. The top three-point shooters are Banister and Kingsley who have over 20 apiece.
A home contest against Sterling College is next on the docket for Bethel.
