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Eagles Men Hold Off
Thiel, 70-67 |
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In gymnastics and ice skating, participants have the advantage of scripting their routines. They pick the degree of difficulty they face. That’s not the case in college basketball. Any game can present pitfalls. The Eagles nearly lost their balance on Saturday (Dec. 20) in a non-conference basketball game at Kates Gymnasium. Division III Thiel came to Ashland with a 3-3 record, but the Tomcats were anything but a listing ship. Instead, they pushed the Eagles for 40 minutes and left the AU faithful holding their breath as the Eagles held on for a 70-67 triumph. Ashland (5-6) had a 35-26 lead at halftime and seemed to have the game in control. But the Tomcats crept back into the game hitting six of 13 three-point tries in the second half and seven of 10 free throw attempts. The visitors closed to within a point, 54-53 with 7:09 remaining in regulation. Ashland went on a 10-4 run over the next three minutes and was in front by seven points, 64-57 with 4:09 left to play. Thiel got to within two points with 18 seconds left, but a pair of free throws by freshman forward Greg Emmons with 14 seconds left put the game away for the Eagles. AU floor leader Michael Fowler led the Eagles with 15 points and seven rebounds. Emmons’ day included 14 points and five rebounds and junior forward Kevin Shorter posted 13 points, five rebounds and four blocked shots. Two familiar problems kept the Eagles from putting some distance between themselves and the Tomcats. AU shot only 57.9 percent at the free throw stripe (11-19) and had 19 turnovers. In points off of turnovers the teams were even, 18-18. As could be expected, the larger Eagles had a 40-20 advantage in points in the paint. Guard Chris Kwolek helped Thiel offset that differential, knocking down four of seven three-point attempts on the way to 12 points. Mike Branch’s 14 points paced Thiel. |