Courtesy of Midland Athletics
FREMONT, Neb. – Midland University men’s basketball competed in their regular-season home final on Saturday afternoon in a Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) matchup against Dakota Wesleyan University. Before tip-off the Warriors honored their veteran players with a senior day ceremony, celebrating Bo Sandquist, Emmanuel Bryson, Laurence Merritt, and Tanner DeKock. The occasion set the tone for an amazing atmosphere as the Warriors gave the Tigers their best effort but ultimately came up short, falling 76-75.
The seniors put on a show on their special day as the group scored all of Midland’s opening 18 points and 27 of Midland’s 31 first-half points. In their first starts of the season, DeKock connected on his first three-point shot of the season while Bryson was a flawless 4-of-4 from the field on his way to nine points in the half.
After leading 31-27 at the intermission, Midland’s momentum slowed to a screeching halt in the second half. An early 21-10 DWU run during the period gave the Tigers their biggest lead of the game up at that point with 9:50 left to play.
The two sides traded shots back and forth, but the Warriors saw their deficit jump to double-digits, 71-61, with just 3:22 remaining.
Never done and out, Midland went on a massive 9-0 run capped by a huge Merritt three-pointer to bring the deficit to one-point, 71-70 with 1:29 to go.
On their ensuing two possessions, the Tigers again tried to shake the Warriors. Tigers’ guard Koln Oppold connected on back-to-back jumpers, one being an and-one, to push the score to 76-70 with 30 seconds left.
Merritt raced down the court and drained a triple to bring the contest back to a single possession and then Midland forced consecutive inbounds turnovers to give themselves a chance to win the game with four seconds remaining.
Trailing 76-75, Merritt got a chance to top off his heroics with a game-winning shot, He pump-faked the Tigers’ defender and floated a shot at the basket with time dwindling. Unfortunately for the Warriors, the shot fell short and they suffered a heartbreaking defeat.
The defeat, although painful, showcased a memorable comeback for a memorable quartet of Midland seniors that have made their mark on and off the court throughout their time on campus. Fittingly, the Warriors’ offensive attack was led by its seniors.
Merritt scored a team-high 22 points, Sandquist had 16 points and game-high 9 rebounds. Rounding out the Warriors’ double-digit scorers was Bryson who chipped in 15 points and 5 rebounds.
Next up for Midland (14-14, 5-13 GPAC) is a road trip to face Hastings (7-21, 2-16 GPAC) on Wednesday, February 16. Tip-off is set for 7:45 p.m. at Lynn Farrell Arena in Hastings, Nebraska.
