Men’s Basketball Falls to the Pioneer
Olathe, Kan.– The Graceland University Men's Basketball team was defeated by the MidAmerica Nazarene University Pioneers, 88-78. The Yellowjackets finish the regular season at 18-10 and are 13-9 in the Heart. The Yellowjackets solidify their No. 7 seed for the Heart Conference Quarterfinal.
Graceland (18-10; 13-9) | MidAmerica Nazarene (20-8; 15-7)
Half 1: Graceland 33 | MidAmerica Nazarene 41
The Pioneers would start the first half by draining back-to-back baskets; Trenton Daughtry would break the run (2-4). JT Washington would sink on from the deep to even the score 10-10. The Pioneers would answer with ten consecutive points to create a ten-point lead (10-20); made charity stripes from Seth Compas would break the run. Aleksa Markovic would make two free throws to pull the gap to four points (27-31). With under two minutes remaining, the Pioneers would sink eight points, and Markovic would break up the consecutive run with made layups (33-41).
Half 2: Graceland 45 | MidAmerica Nazarene 47
Mario Johnson would make the charity strip to interrupt MidAmerica's run (37-49). The Yellowjackets would work for a ten-point collection closing their deficit to nine (47-56); Johnson, Markovic and Seth Compas would contribute. Both teams would work and trade baskets. Graceland would create another eight-point jump to close their gap to one (62-63); Sam'i Roe, Compas and Markovic added points. A late five-point increase would give the Pioneers the edge, and they would hold the lead for the victory.
By the numbers:
30-32 – Yellowjackets had 30 field goals compared to the 32 of the Pirates
8-3 – Graceland sank five more three-pointers than MidAmerica
30-27 – The Pioneers snatched three more rebounds than the Yellowjackets
10-5 – Graceland's bench sank five more points than MidAmerica's bench
Graceland Leaders:
Scoring Leader: Aleksa Markovic – 27
Rebounding Leader: Aleksa Markovic – 6
Assist Leader: Mario Johnson – 5
Steal Leader: Mario Johnson – 3
MidAmerica Nazarene Leaders:
Scoring Leader: Caleb Jones-McCrary – 26
Rebounding Leader: Anthony Brown / Caleb Jones-McCrary – 7
Assist Leader: Anthony Brown – 6
Steal Leader: Jake Alexander – 2
Up Next:
The Men's Basketball team will be back on the road on Thursday, February 23 for the Heart of America Conference Championship Quarterfinals. They take on the No. 2 Seed Peru State College Bobcats, tip-off is set for 7:00 pm.
-Yellowjackets-