McPherson, Kan. – It wasn't for a lack of effort on the part of the McPherson College men's basketball team as they left it all out on the court Saturday night in a 10-point loss to Sterling College. A rough second half of shooting resulted in the 84-74 defeat.
The 'Dogs jumped out to a quick six-point lead just a few minutes into the game and stayed out in front until the midway point of the half when a run by Sterling put the Warriors up by a handful. Mac was able to tie the game and even took the lead for a possession or two but trailed 44-37 heading into the locker room. MC had a good 20 minutes of shooting, making 14-of-30 field goals with 5-of-11 from behind the arc; the team dropped in 4-of-6 free throws. Sterling one-upped the Bulldogs' shooting performance with a 53% showing themselves, 17-of-32; they made 4-of-14 three balls and 6-of-7 foul shots.
Mac came out of halftime and pulled within one just a few minutes in. A run by the Warriors kept them in front by a handful until another surge by the Bulldogs tightened things up again. Leading by just three with seven minutes to play, Sterling went on a 15-3 to all but seal the game. McPherson would not go away and clawed the game back to eight points but by then it was too late as SC went on to take the game 84-74. MC only made 12-of-36 from the floor in the second with 4-of-14 threes falling; they made nine of their 12 free throws. Sterling counted 13-of-33 from the field with 3-of-10 threes; the team converted on 11-of-14 from the line.
The Bulldogs were 26-of-66 shooting for the game including 9-of-25 from deep; Mac put 13-of-18 free throws through the net. They tallied 35 rebounds with 11 offensive boards; the team also had 14 assists, 13 turnovers, eight steals, and three blocks. The 'Dogs scored 40 points in the paint, had 22 come from bench players, and 16 were off of turnovers.
Chris Crook led all scoring with his 21 points on 7-of-15 field goals and 3-of-3 foul shots; the junior made 4-of-8 from distance and had six rebounds and three steals as well. Ramon Martinez ended the night with 16 points on 5-of-11 shooting with 4-of-5 free throws; he pulled in seven rebounds and logged a team-high three assists. Aaron Bachura had one of his more complete games for MC; the sophomore scored 15 points and held Sterling's leading scorer to just nine points, all of which were free throws. Louis Parker III was the final double-digit scorer for the 'Dogs as he went 3-of-6 from the floor and 4-of-7 from the stripe for 10; he had six boards in his 18 minutes on the court.
McPherson will next travel to Leavenworth, Kansas to take on the University of Saint Mary on January 14th for an 8:00 p.m. (CT) 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
