McPHERSON, Kan. (macbulldogs.com) --- The McPherson College men's basketball team overcame an 18-point second-half deficit to lead by as many as three points but couldn't hold on as rival Bethany College escaped with an 83-80 win Thursday night at the McPherson Sport Center in the the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) opener for both schools.
The teams played even through the game's first 4:30 - splitting the first 26 points - before the Swedes (4-3, 1-0 KCAC) went on an 18-7 run behind hot shooting from 3-point range. The insertion of Joey Habtemariam and Cody Harris into the lineup at the 12:09 mark paid huge dividends as Habtemariam drained three 3-pointers and Harris added another and a layup to push the lead to 31-20 with 8:50 to play. The lead reached 12 points with 3:12 remaining in the half on a layup by Khalid Washington, but McPherson (4-1, 0-1 KCAC) responded with six straight points - four by freshman
Grant Munsen (Manhattan, Kan., Manhattan HS) - to cut the lead in half. The Bulldogs couldn't maintain the momentum as the Swedes scored the final five points of the period to take an 11-point lead into the break.
Bethany opened the second half on a 9-2 run. Tyler Larkin nailed a jumper to give the Swedes a 55-37 lead with 17:15 remaining in the game, but the Bulldogs rallied with 11 straight points - six from
DeAndre Henson (Aberdeen, Md., Cloud County CC) - to get within seven before Jesse Patrick stopped the rally with a layup with 14:40 to play. The next points came nearly 90 seconds later as another Washington layup made it 59-48. McPherson embarked on its second big run of the half over the next three minutes, outscoring Bethany, 14-3, to tie the score at 62-62 on a free throw by
Ryan O'Hara (San Antonio, Texas, Cedar Valley CC).
Aaron Bachura (Wilsey, Kan., Council Grove HS) followed with a 3-pointer to give the Bulldogs their first lead since the early goings, but four straight made free throws by Jerricus Funderburke put the Swedes back in front with 7:30 remaining.
The teams traded the lead down the stretch but Bethany was finally able to gain the upper hand with 18 seconds remaining. With the Swedes leading 79-78, Habtemariam was able to corral the rebound on a Harris 3-point miss and was sent to the line as
Chris Crook (Oklahoma City, Okla., Millwood HS) was forced to foul. Habtemariam drained both free throws to give Bethany a three-point lead.
Grant Raleigh (Hesston, Kan., Hesston HS) matched the effort on the other end only to see Habtemariam ice the game with two more free throws. Raleigh had an opportunity to tie the game but his last-second 3-point attempt was blocked by Elvis Okafor.
McPherson finished with more field goals (30-28) and more 3-pointers (9-8) than Bethany, but the Swedes won the game at the free throw line. Bethany was 19-of-26 at the charity stripe, while McPherson was just 11-of-21.
Habtermariam led Bethany with 18 points on four 3-pointers and was a perfect 6-for-6 at the stripe, while Washington and Tyler Larkin had 13 points each. Larkin had a great all-around game with six assists, four boards, two steals and a blocked shot. Funderburke and Ian Merzwinski added nine points apiece with Funderburke pulling down six rebounds.
Henson scored a game-high 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting with three 3-pointers. He also had four assists. Bachura and Crook added 15 points each, while
Careino Gurley (Minneapolis, Minn., Rochester CTC) and
Thomas Butler (Key West, Fla., Vermilion CC) both had eight points in starting roles.
The Bulldogs return to the court on Saturday evening with another rivalry game against Kansas Wesleyan University. Tipoff at Mabee Arena is slated for 7 p.m.
