Kansas City, Mo. – The McPherson College men's basketball team picked up an important KCAC win on Wednesday evening, going on the road to defeat Avila University 60-57.
For the Bulldogs it was their 9th win in a row over the Eagles going back to 2008. The Bulldogs have won eight straight since the Eagles joined the KCAC back in 2018. Wednesday's game was the closest margin of victory for the Bulldogs, and they had to come from behind to secure the win.
The MC defense was superb all night, but the offense, at least in the opening 20 minutes was sub par. The Bulldogs struggled to find a way to score, and even though they were getting some stops on defense the Eagles were able to build a comfortable lead. Avila led 22-11 with 5:27 left in the first half, and when the half ended the deficit remained 11 points, 31-20.
After the intermission, the Bulldogs began to find their rhythm offensively. They continued to work hard on the defensive end, and the stops they created along with the ball making it through the hoop with more regularity, allowed MC the opportunity to chip away at the Eagle lead.
At the 13:23 mark, Josh Rivers hit a three pointer to tie the game at 40, just the second tie of the game. A couple minutes later another jump shot by Rivers, this time for two, gave the Bulldogs their first lead since they led 3-0 in the opening minutes of the game.
The Bulldogs led by as many as eight points, but couldn't seem to put the game out of reach. With under a minute left in regulation, the Bulldog lead was just five points, 60-55. With 11 seconds to play, the Bulldogs failed to get a shot off before the shot clock ran out, turning the ball over to the Eagles. Avila responded with a lay-up to cut the lead to a single possession, 60-57 with 1.3 seconds remaining. Avila called timeout and Coach Eskildsen drew up an inbounds play.
Two Bulldogs checked back to the ball from half court, and Jason Okoro sprinted away from the ball down court. Gage Maccoy threw a ¾ court pass to Okoro, and time ran out before Avila could foul to extend the game.
Key Statistic
The Bulldogs dominated the boards against the Eagles, out-rebounding the home team 45-32.
By the Numbers
MC shot just 20% from the floor in the first half, but rallied in the second half to shoot 55%, giving them 36% for the game.
They went 5 of 16 from behind the three point arc (31%)
At the free throw line they hit on 9 of 12 attempts (75%).
Rivers and Christian Aguillard were the only two Bulldogs to score in double figures.
The Bulldogs won the turnover battle 12-10.
Bulldog Leaders
Points: Josh Rivers (22)
Rebounds: Ja'Quan Chestnut (15)
Assists: Owen Braxmeyer (4)
Steals: Josh Rivers (3)
Blocks: Three Bulldogs (1)
Coaches Quote:
"I thought our group showed some major toughness and grit tonight. In the first half where we really struggled to get anything going on the offensive end we allowed ourselves to stay in the game defensively. Then in the second half I thought Josh Rivers really made some big shots and got us going on the offensive end. Owen Braxmeyer again was a spark off the bench. Rock Hardison made some big shots and defensive plays. Ja'Quan Chestnut having 15 rebounds was huge. I'm just proud of our whole group tonight. Winning on the road is hard and you can't do it without a tough group of individuals." – Coach Eskildsen
Next Up
With the win, the Bulldogs move to 12-8 overall, and 7-7 in the KCAC. They have a big match-up at home on Saturday, taking on intra-county rival Bethany College at 7:00 pm at the Sport Center.
