UMC Men’s Basketball loses hard fought game to Sioux Falls

The University of Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagle Men’s Basketball team scrapped, but fell short to the University of Sioux Falls 85-66.

FIRST HALF –
UMC took a 2-0 lead to start the game, but a quick answer from Sioux Falls was an early sign of a high scoring affair. The Cougars would go on a 6-1 run before the Golden Eagles would make it a three point game at the 15:18 mark. Each team would score a layup over the next minute to make it 12-9 with Sioux falls ahead. The Cougars exploded with a 14-4 run over the next seven minutes of the game, making it 26-14 with about 7 minutes left in the half. A couple of UMC free throws and a Chandler Meeks jumper helped the Golden Eagles regain some momentum, as they would cut the lead to 9 with 5:27 to go in the half. Three-pointers from Reid Grant and Christian Bowen-Webb helped UMC out on the offensive end, but they were unable to close the gap as Sioux Falls took a 45-32 lead into halftime.

SECOND HALF –
Both teams came out firing to start the second half, but Sioux Falls still maintained a comfortable 51-35 lead at the 18:20 mark. The defenses started to wake up over the next several minutes, as the next field goal was not scored unitl about two minutes later. Sioux Falls found themselves in foul trouble, picking up 7 team fouls before the halfway point of the half. Free throws were the only spots of offense, as makes from both sides put the score at 55-39 at the 14:09 mark. UMC’s Jordan Mitchell converted a three point play a minute later to cut the lead back to 12 at the 13 minute mark. That sparked a 7-3 run for the Golden Eagles, capped off by a big jumper from Carlson. The Cougar offense continued to struggle, as they missed shots and committed turnovers, while digging deeper into foul trouble. UMC entered the double bonus at the halfway point of the half, and trailed by 11 at the 9:47 mark in the 2nd. Two free throws from Mitchell cut the lead to single digits moments later. On the next possession, Sioux Falls answered with two free throws of their own. That would spark a 14-2 run following a couple of Golden Eagle turnovers and missed shots. A Micah Garrett fadeaway jumper was the only Golden Eagle bucket over the 4 minute stretch before UMC burned a timeout. Out of the break, the Cougars slowed the pace and knocked down a three to make it 76-52. UMC scored the next 6 on threes from Micah Garrett and Reid Grant, which forced a Sioux Falls timeout. Meeks and Landon Dimler added a late score each, but it was not enough to overcome the relentless offense of Sioux Falls. The Cougars would come away with an 84-66 win.

UMC is now 3-11 on the season and will hit the road to face Winona State next Friday.

Listen to postgame comments from UMC head coach Brian Beamish:

Brayden Carlson

Jordan Mitchell

Chandler Meeks

Caiden Swenby

Reid Grant

Christian Bowen-Webb

GD Deng

Micah Garrett

Andrew Stokes