Postgame Press Conference
SAINT PETER, Minn. – University of Mary Hardin-Baylor Men's Basketball earned an 84-76 win over the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point Friday evening in Saint Peter, Minn. The win advances the Cru to the NCAA Second Round while the Pointers end their season at 19-8.
UWSP led early in the first half, taking a seven-point lead at 12:15.
Donta Coady made a pair of foul shots at 11:00 to cut the gap to five before a layup from Engels made it a one-possession game. Both teams exchanged baskets and the Pointers went back up by five but an
Elijah Lawrence layup followed by a three-pointer from
Cam Stinson knotted the half at 20 with 7:40 left to play.
Engels made a free throw at 7:16 to put the Cru on top and UMHB extended that lead with a 7-0 run, going up 33-24. UMHB made it a ten-point game with 51 seconds to play, taking a 37-29 lead into halftime.
UMHB shot 44.4 percent in the first half with a 36.4 percent showing from beyond the arc. The Cru outrebounded the Pointers 20-14 in the first half but only led for 8:34.
The Cru went back up by ten points at 18:34 and stayed ahead by at least two possessions. UWSP cut the gap to nine with 10:20 to play but Coady hit an ensuing three-pointer for another 12-point lead. UMHB held a double-digit margin until the final minute of action. Josiah Butler and Drew Daoust hit back-to-back three-pointers to pull the Pointers within six. Lawrence made a foul shot for a seven-point lead, followed by another UWSP layup before Coady drained a foul shot for an 82-76 score.
Lawrence followed with two more foul shots at 00:17 and the Cru held on from there, earning the NCAA First Round victory!
Hudson Johnson led the Cru with 27 points, making five three-pointers and 10 field goals.
Donta Coady followed with 15 points and five rebounds with Lawrence adding 13 points and Engels tallying 11 boards. UMHB shot 50 percent in the contest, scoring 16 fastbreak points with 38 points in the paint.
The Cru returns to action on Saturday, March 7th and will play Gustavus Adolphus at 7:20 p.m.
