KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The No.9-ranked Rogers State men's basketball team couldn't hang on to the lead late in the game and the Hillcats upset bid fell short as No.1 Shorter (Ga.) battled to a 63-60 win in the quarterfinals at the Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship on Friday afternoon at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo.
With 13:05 to play in the game, Alex Ewings drained a trey from the right corner to give the Cats a big lead of 11 points. However, the Hawks erased the lead with an 11-0 run capped off by a put back by C.J. Davis with 7:49 to play. Kendrell Thompson silenced the run with a layup that sparked a 6-0 spurt to give the Hillcats a 58-52 lead with 3:41 to play.
Shorter cut the RSU lead to one point with a 7-2 run, putting Larry Cox on the line with 30 seconds to play. Cox was 8-9 from the charity stripe on the day as he stepped to the line. The Byron, Ga. native missed both attempts and on the next possession, the Hawks took a one-point lead with two made free throws by Anthony Banks with 18 seconds to play. Shorter then made a defensive stop and forced the Hillcats to foul. Banks drained both free shots with 1.5 seconds to play. Ewings heaved a hail mary toward the goal as time expired; the shot hit the glass but was off the mark.
RSU took the lead on its first field goal of the game as Donald Williams drained a three pointer from the right elbow. Although there were seven ties in the contest, the Cats did not trail until the 7:20 mark in the second frame. They quickly regained the lead with a bucket by Thompson and held the advantage until the final 18 seconds of the contest.
The Hawks owned the boards, outrebounding RSU 47-27 with 21 offensive rebounds. SU committed 22 turnovers as the Cats tallied nine steals.
Cox and Thompson led the Cats with 12 points apiece. Donald Williams chipped in 10 points and three steals.
After tallying just three points in the first stanza, Walter Hill registered 15 second half points to lead the Hawks with 18 points.
"I am so proud of the way our men played today and all season," Head Coach Justin Barkley said. "This is a great group of guys and I couldn't have asked any more of them. They have battled hard all season and just could finish it off today. I love this team and hate to see the season end for our seniors; they left it all on the court."
Five RSU players end their careers in Hillcats red and blue. The original Hillcat, Maurice Rutherford along with Larry Cox, Joey Twilley, Jeremy Marseille, and Meneptha Darden made invaluable contributions to the RSU basketball program.
Rogers State (24-9) ends its season in the NAIA Tournament quarterfinals for the second consecutive season. Shorter will move on to the Fab Four, taking on No. 4 Concordia on Monday evening.
