Clippers Fall Short Against Missouri Southern State
12/20/2008
Clippers Fall Short Against Missouri Southern State
Carolina, Puerto Rico - The Concordia College men's basketball team was defeated by the Lions of Missouri Southern State University 74-70 yesterday in the semi-finals of the Puerto Rico Lexmark Holiday Tournament in Carolina, Puerto Rico. The Lions are ranked 14th in NCAA Division II Men's Basketball, according to the latest National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) poll released on December 16, 2008.
The Clippers were led by sophomore Samuel Batista (Carolina, Puerto Rico), who again scored a game high of 23 points in front of the home crowd. For the second game in a row, Batista shot 9 for 12 (75%) from the floor, including 4 for 6 (67%) from 3-point range. Sophomore William Eason (Springfield, MA) also was efficient from the floor, shooting 9 for 13 (69%) in scoring 19 points, a point shy of his season high. Eason also pulled down 4 rebounds. Junior Kenny Gaskins (Bronx, NY) added 14 points and a game high 5 assists.
The Clippers faced their largest deficit of the game of 17 points with just over 3 minutes left in the first half. But Eason and Batista combined for 11 points and out scored Missouri Southern State 11-2 during the final three minutes to go into the locker room trailing 42-34 at the half.
After Batista opened the second half with a 3-pointer to cut the deficit to 5 points, the Lions went on a 13-3 scoring run to take a 55-40 lead with 14:28 remaining. Concordia would turn up the defense and fight their way back into the game with a 19-4 scoring run of their own to tie the game at 59-59 at the 08:58 mark.
Both teams would trade baskets before the Lions scored 7 unanswered points for a 70-62 lead with just over four minutes left. The Clippers would get no closer than four points the rest of the way.
The Clippers shot a season high 52% (26 for 50) for the game and a season's best 12 for 14 (85.7%) from the free throw line. Missouri Southern State shot 49% (29 for 59) from the floor. The Lions scored 24 points off of 25 Clipper turnovers and outscored the Clipper bench 21-9. Concordia held a slight advantage in points in the paint at 32-30 and a 13-7 advantage in 2nd chance points.
For the Lions, Mariun Price scored 18 points and grabbed 3 rebounds. Vincent Ateba finished with 15 points on 6 for 8 (75%) shooting and Skyler Bowlin chipped in 11 points.
The loss drops the Clippers record to 2-8. The 14th ranked Lions improve to a perfect 11-0 on the season.
The Clippers will conclude play in the Puerto Rico Lexmark Holiday Tournament on Saturday, December 20th, as they take on the Northwood University (FL) Seahawks. The action tips-off at 5:00 PM.
