MARION, Ind. – The second half of Goshen’s conference schedule got off to a rough start as the Maple Leafs were defeated on the road by Indiana Wesleyan University Saturday afternoon. With a final score of 79-64, Goshen now drops to 4-5 in MCC conference play, and 16-7 overall.
Following a 77-75 overtime win against Marian College, Goshen came into Saturday’s contest looking to build on their winning performance with the possibility of moving up the conference standings. Unfortunately, the Wildcats were trying to do the same thing.
The Wildcats had reeled off two straight MCC victories, including an 84-80 overtime thriller at Saint Francis and an 81-42 pounding of Taylor. Looking to continue their hot-streak and undefeated MCC home record, IWU desperately wanted to avenge an 81-73 loss to the Maple Leafs back in December.
Fans at IWU’s Luckey Arena were treated to an opening half battle as both teams jumped out to fast starts. Proving to be a fairly even battle, Goshen grabbed its first lead early, posting a 15-14 score.
However, the Wildcats quickly responded by going on a 9-0 run and captured a 23-15 advantage midway through the half.
Not letting this get them down, Goshen stepped up its defensive pressure, which gave them sufficient scoring opportunities for a 12-3 run – giving them the lead again at 27-26.
This would be the last time that Goshen would hold the upper hand. The Wildcats closed the first half by outscoring Goshen 12-4 and went into the intermission with a 38-31 advantage.
Goshen head coach Gary Chupp commented on the first half, saying, "We were pretty solid the first 15 minutes of the game on both ends of the floor. Right before break we had a couple of defensive breakdowns, caused by lack of communication, that provided their seven point halftime cushion.”
The second half would prove to lack much of the intensity of the first as Goshen spent it trying to climb back from a 61-39 deficit after IWU outscored the Maple Leafs 23-8 in the opening minutes to gain a 22 point lead.
About those opening minutes, coach Chupp added, “After they made some shots right after halftime, we became a little impatient on the offensive end and had to play catch-up the rest of the way."
Coach Chupp also noted, "The addition of Jon Moon makes them extremely dangerous because they have so many weapons on the perimeter. We wanted to make it difficult on (Antonio) Murrell, and Nate (West) did a great job limiting him to six points. However, Moon had his way with us on the perimeter, and we didn't have an answer for (Zach) Coverstone down low."
Goshen only got as close as 15 points during the second half as the Wildcats dialed up their defense to hold sophomore Errick McCollum, currently averaging 24.9 points per game, to 11 points – matching his season low set against Bethel College on Jan. 9, 2008.
Facing a tough IWU defense, Goshen struggled offensively as a team, shooting only 41.5% from the field and 63.2% from the free-throw line. The Wildcats also took advantage of thirteen Maple Leaf turnovers and out-rebounded Goshen by a total of 32 to 26.
Following the game, coach Chupp summed everything up by saying, "I felt like we ran into a good team that played extremely well on its home court. After we beat them at our place to open the conference season, we knew we were going to see their best effort, and unfortunately we weren't able to match it."
Goshen continues MCC play on the road this Saturday, Feb. 2 when they face off against Spring Arbor University. Tipoff is set for 3 p.m. in Spring Arbor, Michigan at the Spring Arbor University Fieldhouse
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News
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  Freshman Scott Bruggeman
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• Opponent:Spring Arbor University
• Date: Saturday, Feb. 2
• Place: away
• Time: 3 p.m.
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