|
|
JAN.
18 — Goshen Comes Back, Hangs On To Beat Grace
Squad
persists through Lancer runs to take 88-83 decision;
evens league mark |
Goshen, IN — Uncertainty was perhaps
the only certainty Tuesday night in the Roman Gingerich Center, as the
Goshen College men’s basketball team defeated Mid-Central Conference
rival Grace College by an 88-83 count in a wacky finish to the first
half of the MCC schedule for both teams. While a game featuring eight
lead changes and 10 ties doesn’t automatically qualify for an “odd” label,
Tuesday night’s tilt may very well have: Fans witnessed both a
24-point swing and a 19-point swing between the teams, setting up an
interesting, if not unexpected, finish.
“This game was strange in that there were times where we were
playing very well and had a good-sized lead, and there were others
where we seemed completely out of it and trailed by a good margin,” said
Stan Daugherty, Goshen head coach. “I’m just proud of our
guys and the way they finished.”
It was Goshen (15-7, 4-4) that started the game as the dominant
team, slowly building a 32-19 advantage over the first 14 minutes of play.
It was then the visiting Lancers turn to put on a run, outscoring the
Leafs by a 13 to two count over the final five and a half minutes of play
to close to a 34-32 deficit at the half.
“We got off to a solid start, but when Grace went to a smaller,
quicker line up toward the end of the first half we didn’t make
the necessary adjustments quickly enough,” Daugherty said. “Their
quickness bothered us, and we didn’t finish the half strong.”
The squads traded baskets for the first three and a half minutes
of the second period, and the game was tied at 43-43 with 16:23
remaining. Grace then exploded for a 15 to four scoring burst over the
game’s
next three minutes, and Daugherty’s team found itself staring at
a 58-47 deficit with 13:27 to play, completing a 24-point turnaround
from the Leafs’ 13-point lead in the first half.
“It was at that point in the game that I wasn’t sure how we’d
respond,” Daugherty said of his squad’s 11-point deficit. “We
didn’t defend very well for about a three minute stretch, and Grace
made us pay by hitting big shot after big shot.”
After a timeout called by Daugherty in an attempt to stop the
bleeding, Goshen slowly responded. The Leafs still found themselves
down by 11 (51-62) with 12:12 remaining, but sophomore David
Haire’s
three-pointer at the 12:04 mark would ignite a run. Daugherty’s
team outscored Grace by a 14 to three count over the game’s next
four minutes, tying the game at 65-65 after junior Tyler Sheerer buried
a three-ball at the 7:54 mark.
After Grace senior Andrew Kipsey knocked in a jumper to quiet
the crowd, it was junior Jordan Buller’s turn to come up big, scoring
a driving layup and burying a deep three-pointer over the Leafs’ next
two possessions to send the crowd into a frenzy. His second basket gave
Goshen a 70-67 lead with 6:16 remaining, and it was a lead the Lancers
would never be able to erase. Even without connecting on a two-point field
goal for the rest of the game, Goshen used the three-point arc and the
free throw line to seal the deal over the final six minutes of play. A
pair of threes from Sheerer and another from Haire were the Leafs’ only
field goals during that stretch, as Goshen converted on nine of its last
10 free throws to pull away. Goshen led by eight points (83-75) with a
minute on the clock, completing a 19-point swing from its 11-point deficit
with 12:12 to play in the contest.
“It would have been easy to give in when we not only lost our
lead, but got down by 11 points in the second half,” Daugherty said. “I
was just proud of our players’ ability to hang on and persevere.
We had great ball movement late in the game, and we stepped up
and hit big shots. As we got better offensively down the stretch, our
defense
picked up and we were able to get some important stops. It was
a great effort to finish a game against an outstanding Grace team.”
Goshen’s 14 for 27 shooting performance (51.9 percent) in the first
half was only outdone by its blistering 16 for 23 effort in the second
period (69.6 percent), which included a seven for 10 clip from three-point
range (70 percent). For the game, the Leafs shot a total 30 for 50 from
the field (60 percent) while Grace connected on 29 of 62 attempts (46.8
percent).
Junior Eric Walsh led five players in double-figure scoring for
Goshen, charting 25 points on a 10 of 13 shooting effort from
the floor. Senior Paul Kopanski recorded his second consecutive double-double,
scoring
16 on six of eight shooting to complement a game-high 10 rebounds.
Sheerer scored 12 points on a four for eight effort from three-point land,
while
Buller charted 10 points to go with five assists. Perhaps most
impressive was 11 points offered by Haire, who had missed Goshen’s last
week of games and practice sessions with an aggravated hamstring injury.
Haire was three for four from three-point land and two for two from the
free throw line in just nine minutes of action while scoring all his points
in the second half.
“It was great to have team balance again, as Eric Walsh and Paul
Kopanski really played solid games on all fronts tonight,” Daugherty
said. “Eric got back on track shooting the ball, and Paul’s
activeness was apparent in his second straight double-double.
David Haire again gave us a big lift off the bench. Here’s a kid
that hasn’t
been able to do anything on the court besides shoot free throws
for the last week, and he comes out and plays with such confidence.
We needed
that down the stretch tonight.”
Goshen will next begin the second round of MCC action on Saturday,
when the University of St. Francis will visit the Roman Gingerich Center.
The Cougars defeated Goshen by an 86-81 score in the first league game
of the season on Nov. 23 in Fort Wayne. Saturday’s game is slated
to begin at 3 p.m. |
  Junior
Tyler Sheerer
|
|
|
|
|
|
