| KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Evangel (Mo.) defense proved to be too much to handle on Thursday when LC State Men’s Basketball saw its season come to and end in the NAIA Round of 16. The Valor, a 15-seed that upset its way through the first and second rounds, defeated the Warriors 77-74 in Kansas City to end LC State’s season with a 24-9 record.
“Tough way to end things for such a special group,” Head Coach Austin Johnson said. “We showed a lot of resiliency and togetherness tonight but just didn’t play well enough to win. Despite the pain of the season ending, what this group accomplished together is as impressive as anything I’ve seen in my career as a coach. The last game doesn’t define us as a team, but rather the togetherness, love and trust these guys exhibited all year is what will define them as people moving forward. I am so lucky I got to be a part of this season and we’re thankful for all the support from the LC community.”
The Warriors erased a 22-point deficit and tied things up in a strong second half, but turnovers in the first half were too much to overcome.
The contest also marked the end of the LC State careers of Jaedon Bradley, Davian Brown and Sam Stockton.
“I will miss coaching these seniors dearly and each of the three left a profound impact on this program,” Johnson added.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Evangel opened up the contest with a 10-2 run with the first LC State basket being a dunk by Alton Hamilton. Brown put back an offensive board to make it 10-4 at 15:06. Evangel grew its lead to 17-4 in the slow-moving first half and Hamilton added a basket by 10:57.
The Valor continued to shoot at a high percentage and stretched its lead to 24-7 with nine minutes to play in the half. Hamilton and Gorden Boykins each found the basket and Bradley hit a 3 to make it 30-14 by 7:34. The Valor had a 20-point lead with six minutes remaining in the half.
Brown added a layup and pair of free throws before Quentin Raynor and Bradley each hit a 3 to cut the deficit to 37-24 in the final three minutes. The Valor went on a 6-0 run and Hamilton fought his way to the basket to have the score at 43-26 at the break.
Turnovers continued to cost the Warriors. Evangel increased its lead to 19, 45-26, with 19 points off turnovers. Foul shots by John Lustig preceded a triple by the Colfax native, and Hamilton added to the total, but Evangel kept the difference near 20 points.
A 3-pointer by Lustig and jumper by Raynor kept LC State going down the stretch, with Stockton cutting the margin to 15, 60-45, at 11:19. Back-to-back 3s by Raynor and free throws by Bradley cut the difference to single digits, 62-53, with 8:30 to go.
Hamilton grabbed an offensive rebound and assisted on a triple by Raynor, his third in a two-minute span, to cap the 11-point run with LC State trailing 62-56 at 7:52. An and-one play by Bradley and two free throws by Hamilton made it a three-point game at 6:18.
Evangel regained its footing at 6:10 to push its lead back to five, 66-61, and foul shots by Hamilton brought LC State within two with 5:40 to play.
Boykins evened the score 66-66 at 4:55 but a three-point play the Valor had the Warriors in a deficit once more. Hamilton fought his way to the basket before a free throw by Stockton tied the game at 3:47.
Another run by the Valor pushed the Evangel lead to four points with less than three minutes to play in the contest. Brown nailed a 3 with 27 seconds on the clock to make it a one-point game, 73-72.
Free throws grew Evangel’s advantage to 75-72 in the closing seconds, and a tip in by Bradley had the difference at 75-74, with nine seconds to play. Free throws by the Valor made the difference three points and a last second 3 by the Warriors to not fall.
Hamilton led the Warrior with 18 points on 6-for-10 shooting, Raynor added 14, Bradley scored 13 and Lustig tallied 10. Hamilton, Bradley and Stockton each grabbed nine rebounds and Stockton led the team with five assists.
LC State outrebounded Evangel 49-32, including 18 offensive boards. The Warriors committed 16 turnovers and the Valor capitialized with 23 points off turnovers.
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