Three SU men's basketball players reached double-digits in scoring as the Pirates won a crucial Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference game against Hendrix College on Saturday (Feb. 16) in Georgetown, TX by a score of 80-79.
It was all Southwestern in the early-going as the Pirates took a 13-2 lead thanks to three three-pointers and a pair of two-point shots in the first 5:09 of the game. The Warriors were able to claw back and take a two-point lead with 11:31 on the clock and neither team led by more than four the rest of the half. Hendrix took a 41-38 lead in to the intermission.
The Warriors came out in the second stanza and went ahead 49-43. SU scored the next eight points for a small lead and the game ended up tied at 51-51. Less than a minute and a half later, the Pirates were ahead by seven. The SU lead got cut and the game was tied 61-61 with 7:40 to go. Neither team led by more than two the rest of the game and Hendrix held a two-point lead with 54 seconds left in regulation. Senior Mike Powell (Houston, TX/Episcopal HS) hit a jumper at the top of the key to tie the game and he then hit one of two free throws with 16 seconds to go to hold on for the win. The game saw 14 lead changes and 14 tie scores.
Powell finished the game with 11 points on 4-9 shooting and he was 3-5 from the free throw line. Sophomore Zach Bergstrom (La Vernia, TX/La Vernia HS) led the Bucs with 17 points as he connected on 6-10 from the floor. The guard was 2-5 from three-point range and 3-4 at the charity stripe.
Senior Matt Caplan (Houston, TX/University of Kansas) was 3-5 from beyond the three-point arc and 4-7 from the field for 12 points. Ben Schleif (San Antonio, TX/Reagan HS) had four of the team's seven steals in the game while also scoring five.
The Pirates controlled the ball well in the victory, tying a season-low by committing just 13 turnovers. As a team, SU shot 50 percent (30-60) from the field, 30 percent (6-20) from three-point range and 66.7 percent (14-21) from the free throw line. Hendrix held a slim 34-31 lead in rebounds.
The win improves the Bucs' SCAC record to 5-8 and their overall record to 10-13. Hendrix is now 13-10, 6-8 in the conference. SU is tied with Austin College for the fourth spot in the Western Division.
The Pirates will take on Colorado College this coming Friday (Feb. 22) in Colorado Springs, CO at 8:00 pm.
