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JAN.
11 — Goshen Gets Halfway Home At #16 Taylor
Leafs
beat Taylor in first period but get handled in second
for 52-69 loss |
Upland, IN — For 20 minutes of play
Tuesday night, the Goshen College men’s basketball team had 16th-ranked
Taylor University right where it wanted it. The Leafs led the Trojans
by a 29-25 score at halftime, and had captured an eight-point lead twice
in the first period.
The second half was another story altogether.
Taylor went right at senior post players Paul Kopanski and Troy
Springer in the latter half — both were saddled with three fouls
apiece at the intermission — and shot 15 of 21 from the floor (71.4
percent) in its 69-52 defeat of the Leafs at Don J. Odle Gymnasium, pushing
Goshen below the .500 mark in Mid-Central Conference play for only the
second time this season. Goshen’s offense, which was a reasonable
13 for 28 in the first half (46.4 percent), cooled to a seven for 22 performance
(31.8 percent) in the second period behind a need for quick points: Taylor
opened up a 10-point lead midway through the half, causing the Leafs to
press offensively.
“Our concern at halftime was our foul trouble in the post, and
Taylor did a good job of taking advantage of that in the second
half,” said
Stan Daugherty, Goshen head coach. “I didn’t think we were
very aggressive defensively inside during the second half, and
Taylor took it to us.”
Goshen (13-7, 3-4) used a solid defensive effort in the first
period to limit the Trojans to just a nine for 27 performance
from the field (33. 3 percent), but foul troubles were mounting.
Kopanski and Springer could not catch a break inside, and the
two were whistled for a total of six fouls in a combined 17 minutes
of play. Daugherty’s team captured a 25-17 lead with 3:31
to play in the half and still led by eight points at the 2:44
mark, but a six to two Taylor run over the final two and a half
minutes cut the Goshen lead to just four at the break.
“I was very pleased with our first half of play,” Daugherty
said. “We had a nice balance on both ends of the floor,
and were really in the position that we wanted to be in.”
The Leafs maintained their lead until the 15:11 mark in the second
half, when Taylor grabbed a 37-35 advantage. It was a lead the
hosts would not give back, as Goshen was outscored by a 44 to
23 count in the second half.
“I think Taylor got more active and more aggressive defensively
in the second half, and they took us out of some of the things
we had success with in the first half,” Daugherty said. “They
had some guys step up and make shots for them, which you have
to have in order to win in this league. It’s been a tough
two-game road swing for us, and I hope we’ve learned from
it and improved.”
Junior Eric Walsh led the scoring pace for Goshen, notching 14
points to go with nine rebounds. Classmate Jordan Buller added
12 points on a five for 10 shooting effort, while sophomore Willie
Frazier grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds. Kopanski and Springer
combined for 10 points in foul-plagued minutes, while Kopanski
grabbed seven boards. Sophomore guard David Haire missed the
game with a tender hamstring. He is expected to be back in time
for the Grace College game next Tuesday, Jan. 18.
Prior to that contest, however, is a date with Trinity International
University in a non-conference match-up on Saturday, as the Leafs
will get a brief break from MCC action. Game time is set for
3 p.m. in the Roman Gingerich Center. |
  Junior
Jordan Buller
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