Bulldogs Come Up a Possession Short Against Ottawa on Senior Night

Photo by Natalia Ahrens

McPherson, Kan. – The McPherson College men's basketball team dropped a tough one on Saturday to the Ottawa University Braves 80-77 on Senior Day.

The Bulldogs had three point lead at the halftime intermission, 43-40, and then led by double digits midway through the second half. Down the stretch, they struggled to make baskets, and the Braves capitalized.

The Bulldogs scored just five points in the final four minutes of the game. They trailed by three and had the ball with 2 ticks on the clock. They inbounded the ball, and had a good look at a game tying three pointer, but it wouldn't go.

After the game, the Bulldogs honored two senior players, Fred Watts (Houston, Texas), and Kemryn Jenkins (Eminence, Ky.) and Student Manager Tevin Oller (Merriam, Kan.).

Key Statistic

The Bulldogs coughed up the ball 17 times in the game, and Ottawa turned those miscues into 23 points.

By the Numbers

The Bulldogs shot 45% from the floor (19 of 64), and 33% from deep (10 of 30).

The Braves had a slim margin (39-37) on the boards.

Four Bulldogs scored in double figures.

Bulldog Leaders

Points: Josh Rivers (19)

Rebounds: Gage Maccoy (12)

Assists: Gage Maccoy, Jason Okoro (3)

Steals: Josh Rivers (3)

Blocks: Josh Rivers, Kemryn Jennkins, Rock Hardison (1)

Coach Quote

"That was another battle. It seems like every time we play Ottawa it comes down to a final possession or down to the end. I wish we could have gotten a win for our seniors. Turnovers really hurt us at crucial times. We got a great look at the end to tie it but just didn't knock it down. Now we need to be ready to go on Wednesday in the first round of the tournament."

 Next Up

 The Bulldogs finish the regular season with a 16-9 overall record and a 14-9 mark in the KCAC. They will be the fourth seed in the upcoming KCAC tournament, and will get a bye in the opening round. They will host a quarterfinal game at the Sport Center, at 7:00 pm on Wednesday evening against the winner of Southwestern College and York College. Tickets for Wednesday's Quarterfinal game go on sale on Tuesday morning at 10:00 am on the KCAC website, https://www.kcacsports.com/tickets.