Mustangs
can't hold halftime lead and fall at Clarke
Posted
2/27/08 11:13 PM
Curtis Kilgore |
Dillon Allen |
Brett McGee |
DUBUQUE, Iowa
-- Seventh-seeded Mount Mercy College couldn't hold on to a one-point
halftime lead and saw its season come to an end with a 77-72 loss
to second-seeded Clarke College in the quarterfinals of the 2008
Midwest Collegiate Conference Men's Basketball Tournament on Wednesday
at the Kehl Center.
Clarke trailed,
29-28, at intermission but shot nearly 60 percent from the floor
and went 13-of-15 at the foul line after the break. Mount Mercy
connected on 54 percent of its field goal attempts in the second
period, but only went to the free throw line twice, going 1-for-2.
The Mustangs finish the season at 13-16 overall, while the Crusaders
take a 20-11 mark into a Friday semifinal against sixth-seeded
St. Ambrose University. The Bees upset third-seeded Iowa Wesleyan
College, 88-87, on a 25-foot bank shot at the buzzer in double
overtime in Mount Pleasant, Iowa.
Seniors Curtis
Kilgore, Dillon Allen, and Brett McGee reached double figures
for Mount Mercy. Kilgore led the way with 17 points, six rebounds,
and four steals. Allen added 15 points, six boards, and five assists.
McGee hit three 3-pointers and finished with 13 points. Junior
guard Lucas Blood also drained three triples and tallied nine
points off the bench, while junior forward Brandon Barnhart contributed
eight points and a team-high seven rebounds.
DeMonte Bynum
led four Crusaders in double digits with a game-high 22 points.
He also had four assists and three steals. Josh Bellaire had 16
points, Brian Harris 14 points and 10 rebounds, and John Heavens
13 points and five boards.
Fourth-seeded
Grand View College (13-17), an 82-75 winner over fifth-seeded
Ashford University (16-13), travels to Oskaloosa, Iowa, to take
on top-seeded William Penn University (26-5) in Friday's other
semifinal. The NAIA Division II 13th-ranked Statesmen defeated
ninth-seeded Viterbo University (Wis.) (9-22), 96-81, Wednesday
night. The championship game of the MCC tournament will be hosted
by the higher seed on Sunday at 2:00 p.m., with the winner earning
an automatic berth in the NAIA Division II Men's Basketball Championships
March 12-18 at Keeter Gymnasium in Point Lookout, Mo.
