McPHERSON, Kan. (macbulldogs.com) ---
Garrett Owen (Woodward, Okla., Woodward HS) scored a career-high 23 points and
Aaron Bachura (Wilsey, Kan., Council Grove HS) added 20, but the McPherson College men's basketball team could not overcome a 34-point game by Ottawa's Hollis Mitchell as the Braves picked up a 94-86 Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) victory Saturday afternoon at the Sport Center.
The Bulldogs (1-11, 0-7 KCAC) grabbed the early lead on a 3-pointer by Owen, but the Braves (5-6, 5-2 KCAC) battled back to grab an 22-14 lead at the midway mark of the first half on a basket by Kyle Patrick. McPherson erased the deficit over the next three minutes, taking a 23-22 lead on a layup by Owen - who scored seven of the Bulldogs' nine points during the stretch.
After trading the lead back-and-forth, McPherson pushed out to a six-point lead at 34-28 with 4:08 to play on another Owen 3-pointer only to see Ottawa respond with a 9-0 run capped by a basket by Isaiah Palmer at the 2:12 mark. A basket by
Louis Parker III (Midwest City, Okla., Midwest City HS) cut the lead back to one, but a putback by Titus Rice gave the Braves a 39-36 lead at the break.
McPherson grabbed an early lead in the second half on a 3-pointer by Bachura but Ottawa quickly retook the lead. Later, the Bulldogs were able to tie the game at 69 on a layup by
Frederick Watts (Houston, Texas, Channelview HS) with 7:00 to play. The Braves, however, responded with a 14-3 run to take an 81-70 lead with 4:19 remaining. McPherson mounted one final charge, cutting the Ottawa lead to three at 89-86 on another Watts layup with 1:18 to play, but the Braves scored the game's final five points.
Owen reached his 23 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the field with four 3-pointers and a 5-of-6 effort at the line. He also had five assists. Bachura was 6-of-11 from the field, matching Owen with four threes. He continues his march towards 1,000 career points, needing just 28 points to reach the milestone.
Watts added 15 points and eight rebounds, while Parker had 10 points and five rebounds off the bench.
Mitchell finished 9-of-15 from the field, including 6-of-8 from behind the arc, and was a perfect 10-for-10 at the line. Tas Jones chipped in with 15 points and 11 rebounds and Rice added 15 points and Palmer 11. The Braves shot 50.8 percent (31-of-61) from the field, including 42.9 percent (9-of-21) from behind the arc and 79.3 percent (23-of-29) at the line. In the second half alone, Ottawa was 18-of-33 from the field.
"We continue to have great effort, and I'm proud of that," said head coach
Tim Swartzendruber. "The frustration is that one stretch we seem to have when we don't score. Ottawa is talented and we were right with them. We need to keep our heads up and keep improving."
The Bulldogs play their final home game of the calendar year Tuesday night when York College visits the Sport Center. The Panthers (7-5, 4-3 KCAC) enter Tuesday's contest on a two-game winning streak after topping Friends, 82-66, Saturday afternoon in York, Nebraska. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m.
The York game kicks off a busy week for McPherson, which faces Haskell Indian Nations University at 6 p.m. Thursday night in Lawrence. The team then heads out for Puerto Rico before dawn on Friday. After a couple of days of travel and sightseeing, the Bulldogs will face Universidad del Sagrado Corazon on Sunday, Dec. 17, and the University of Puerto Rico-Carolina on Monday, Dec. 18, before returning home Wednesday, Dec. 20.
