Sterling Men's Basketball once again took on one of the best in the nation Monday night and faired well. As often happens, the final score does not reflect the battle that went on for thirty minutes of play. Sterling had a lead early in the second half, trailed by as many as twenty, and finished on an 8-1 run as time expired. After a tough battle against the #11 team in the country, Sterling lost on the road to Southwestern College, 81-68.
Sterling men's basketball is getting into the habit of fighting its way out of early deficits and slow starts. Sterling is also getting into the habit of using their defense to make a difference in how competitive they are on a nightly basis. Monday night was no exception. Sterling found themselves down 8 early against the #11 Southwestern College Moundbuilders. Sterling's defense kept Southwestern from shooting exceptionally well, but struggled to keep the Moundbuilders from dominating the boards. Statistically, the first half was evenly matched outside of rebounds and assists, which Southwestern held the advantage in both.
After the early 8 point deficit, Sterling worked their way back in the gritty way they have clawed back into games in this young season. Running their offense through the post Sterling worked their way back into the game, trailing by 1 point two times before finally tying the game at 27 with 4:15 left in the first half. Southwestern scored on consecutive possessions and pushed the lead back to 5, but a well drawn up play just before halftime gave Cedric Rollerson a good look at a 3 pointer that he cashed in on as time expired and cut the Southwestern halftime lead to just two at 36-34. Sterling, picked last in the KCAC, was going toe to toe with the team picked to finish second in the KCAC. Although the offense was being run through the post, it was Rollerson on the offensive end that was the driving force on the Warrior's offense. Rollerson had 14 points at the break.
Sterling tied the game twice early in the second half before a Lucas Briar three gave the Warriors their first lead of the game. Sterling held the lead for the next three minutes before Southwestern took it back, this time for good at the 14:21 mark in the second half. Over the next ten minutes Southwestern built an 18 point lead and eventually capped their lead at 20 with just over two minutes left to play. During the Southwestern's scoring stretch, the Warriors had little runs of their own cutting the lead to a manageable 12 points, but the Moundbuilders seemed to always have an answer. Over the last two minutes, Sterling went on an 8-1 run to cut the final point differential to just 13. Final score in Winfield was 81-68, Moundbuilders.
For thirty minutes, the Warriors challenged another one of the top teams in the country but faded, just a little, down the stretch. Cedric Rollerson led Sterling's offense with 20 points and 4 rebounds. Lucas Briar and Will Thigpen each had 14 points. Thigpen added 7 rebounds and 3 steals, and Briar grabbed 4 rebounds. Sterling is now 4-4 this season and 1-2 in KCAC play. The Warriors currently sit at 9th in the standings and play the two teams directly above them in the next two games, which could boost them significantly over the next 5 days.
Thanksgiving week always adds a challenge for the KCAC. The conference does not play the Saturday after Thanksgiving so they play three games the following week. This week for the Warriors includes the Southwestern game on Monday, McPherson College at home on Thursday night, and a road game against Bethany College on Saturday. Thursday's game in the Gleason Center begins at 6 pm with the JV men's team playing at 3:45 earlier in the afternoon.
Original source can be found here.
Alerts Sign-up