Courtesy of Midland Athletics
FREMONT, Neb. – Midland University men’s basketball continued their early-season Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) play Saturday night when they hosted the No. 10-ranked University of Jamestown. The two sides battled back and forth, but the Jimmies evaded the Warriors long enough to secure the 78-64.
The Warriors led for just over four minutes overall but pushed and prodded the Jimmies all night long.
Both sides were able to find their offensive groove in the first half, the two teams combined for 87 points in the period. Three-point shots were the theme of the night, both the Warriors (8-of-19) and Jimmies (7-of-19) attempted 19 triples in the first half.
Colton Uhing led the Warriors at the half, connecting on three three-point shots and scoring 11 total points. The Jimmies were buoyed by sharpshooter Marc Kjos, who was 4-of-6 from behind the arc in the half. A seven-point run helped Jamestown push their advantage to seven at the intermission, leading 47-40.
In the second half, the Warriors’ perimeter shooting faltered as they shot 4-of-22 (18.2%) from behind the arc. The Warriors’ cold shooting allowed for the Jimmies to push their advantage to ten with 11:24 to go.
However, Midland did not rollover. Instead, they went on a run of their own. Scoring seven unanswered points to cut the deficit to three with 10:09 remaining. The trend reverted as Jamestown again opened up the game, taking a nine-point lead with 8:18 left to play. Midland stormed back, using another 7-0 run to cut the Jimmies’ lead to just 64-62 at the 5:15 mark.
The Warriors’ seemed to have significant momentum in their favor, but a Jimmies’ timeout allowed them to regroup and readjust for the game’s final stretch.
Jamestown used a dominant 14-2 run to give themselves plenty of breathing room and seal their 78-64 victory.
Four Warriors reached double-digits in the contest, Uhing (17 points), Bo Sandquist (16 points), Laurence Merritt (12 points), and Emmanuel Bryson (12 points).
“We love our team and the effort they give day in and day out,” commented head coach Oliver Drake postgame. “They’ve put in the effort behind the scenes and it’s only a matter of time before their hard work comes to light. Jamestown is one of the best teams in the country right now. That is a place we strive to be and with continued effort and hard work, we can get to that level.”
Up next on the schedule, Midland (5-3, 0-2 GPAC) will host Northwestern (7-0, 1-0 GPAC) on Tuesday, November 23. Tip-off is set for 7:45 p.m. at the Wikert Event Center in Fremont.
