Men fight an uphill battle all season

Seniors have nothing left to lose

by: Mallory Mulvihill
Sports Editor

The Monmouth College men’s basketball team is trying to make the best of the rest of their season. With five games left to go, the men realize they have nothing to lose, especially the five seniors: Chris Hebeler, Anthony Beaird, Tucker Blaser, Jim Dibble, and Matt Hammer. The men have suffered enough tough losses to last them a lifetime (remember the three tough overtime losses to Knox, Grinnell, and Lake Forest) and fought enough uphill battles, they look to finish off the season on a positive note.

The men played sharp shooting Grinnell on Jan 31. at Darby Gym in Iowa. As we remember, Grinnell plays a very unconventional style of basketball that involves fast breaking for a three pointer, subs every minute, and a full court trapping press that never stops. The men have always played a close game with the Pioneers, but forgot that when Grinnell is on, they are on, especially in the confines of their own gym. Grinnell was an impressive 25-60 from behind the arc, which caused problems for the Scots. The men only took 24 three pointers and made 9. They were outscored 50-27 alone from behind the arc. The Scots also struggled from behind the charity strip, shooting just 14-25, while Grinnell shot 12-14.

The Scots trailed most of the first half but battled back to make the score 65-60 at the end of the first half. The Scots came out of the gates fired up as they scored six quick points before Grinnell answered with a three point bucket. The Scots didn’t get any closer than eight as they finally fell 123-113. The Scots were led in scoring by Beaird with 27 points and 9 assists, Blaise Rogers with 21 points, and a double-double by Joe Terwelp with 11 points and 10 rebounds.

The Scots posted their second win in conference against St. Norbert on Jan. 28. The men had trouble a few weeks ago knocking off the Green Knights, losing 67-62. The Scots jumped out to a lead at the 16:19 mark and never looked back. Beaird was all over the place in the first ten minutes of the game playing like a true senior. He contributed in scoring, rebounding, and steals. The Scots entered the break up 35-28. The Green Knights made a run at the Scots, coming within seven, but the men held them off finally beating St. Norbert 71-58. Beaird again led the Scots with 14 points, David Price dropped in 13, and sharp shooting Raun Singleton added 12.

The men played unbeaten and nationally ranked Lawrence and almost gave them their first loss of the season. The Vikings remain the only team in the NCAA with an unbeaten record; that includes DI, DII, and DIII schools. Lawrence also has senior All- American Chris Braier, who averages 19 points a game, to deal with and contain.

The Scots again missed out on important opportunities to seal the deal at the end of the game against Lawrence. It has never been a question of bad shots, it has been more bad luck than anything else.

The Scots were down by as much as 13 in the first half to the third ranked Vikings, but battled hard to keep things within reach. The Vikings shut down Beaird from behind in the arc in first half, only letting him shoot two. Terwelp did his job as usual at the block converting three layups after the six minute mark. Rogers hit a jumper and made two free throws at the end of the second half to pull the Scots to within five.

The Scots stayed close throughout most of the second half, but couldn’t quite get over the hump, finally losing 75-68. Four Scots scored in double digits including: Rogers with 16, Beaird with 16, Terwelp with 14, and Price with 13.

The Scots make their last Wisc. road trip of the year looking to beat Beloit and Ripon on Feb. 3 and 4. The loss to Grinnell dashed the men’s hopes to finish .500 in conference, but with two wins this weekend, the men could use the momentum to avenge an overtime loss to Knox on Feb.8.