(1.9.17) By Blake Meacham – The Morningside men’s basketball team downed the Dordt College Defenders Wednesday night in Sioux Center, Iowa. The final score, 83-78, reflected how tightly contested the game was throughout the entire two hours. At half time, the Mustangs were down 42-37.
When the second half started, the Mustangs took a commanding lead after an 18-3 scoring run. After being up by 15 at one point, the Mustangs let the lead slip away when the Defenders tied the game at 72 with three and a half minutes left. However, the Mustangs made the next bucket to pull ahead by two and never lost the lead.
Bryce Koch led the scoring effort with 19 points. Ryan Tegtmeier had 15, Pierce Almond had 14, and Brody Egger finished with 13.
Since losing at home to Dakota Wesleyan a couple of weeks ago, the Mustangs have won three in a row, and have now won five of their last six games. Their record stands at 19-7 overall and 9-6 in conference play, which puts them at fifth in the GPAC.
“Since then [Dakota Wesleyan], we’ve focused much harder on our defensive effort. If we can consistently get stops and play our best defense, we can play with anyone,” said Koch, a senior starter.
Currently, the Mustangs are fifth in the GPAC, behind four teams that are all in a tie for first place. If the Mustangs continue their hot streak, they can make some noise at the top of the conference standings. Bryce Koch knows they have a chance.
“Our offense isn’t a problem when we play great defense. When we can transition well on both ends, we’ll beat anyone.”
Morningside faces Doane College at 4 pm on Saturday (2.11) in Sioux City.
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