Our Daily Dive series is your daily rundown of what is happening around NAIA basketball. We feature game breakdowns, updates on players, coaches teams and leagues for both men’s and women’s basketball.
Can’t express the enjoyment I personally get from running NAIA Hoops Report. I love the interactions with fans, players, coaches, SID’s, AD’s…everyone! Honestly, it is you guys that make the site. Sure, our team works hard behind the scenes, but without an audience, we would just be talking to ourselves all season long. We are far from perfect and have lots of room for growth, but I truly believe that no one out works us! Last night was one of those nights where there wasn’t a ton of action. There weren’t a lot of Top 25 teams and/or league favorites who were in action, but that doesn’t mean you just take the night off and ignore the many student-athletes who WERE in action. Matter of fact, our two games of the day last night were fun ones! Hopefully you were able to catch them. If not here is the recap:
– Games of the Day
- Saint Ambrose (IA) 86 – Mount Mercy 75
- This was our first look at Saint Ambrose this season. The Bees had lost last years All-American, John Kerr, and started off a bit slow in the 1st half. They still held a 34-29 lead at half, but it was the 2nd Half where the offense started to really click. Familiar face, Tom Kazanecki, had 18pts and 6rebs for Saint Ambrose, but it was newcomer Drake Gunn who chipped in a game high 20pts to lead Ambrose to the win. The Bees were able to hold Mt Mercy sharp shooter, Bailey Basala to 2-10 shooting from 3. Basala did still finish with 16pts and 7 rebs though. It was the first time this season that Basala had been held under 20pts. RoyShawn Webb finished with 18pts, 7rebs for the Mustangs.
- Wiley 73 – Philander Smith 72
- This game was a ton of fun and got a bit crazy late as Josh Mullins, who only had five points all game, had a four-point play with 21 seconds left to give Wiley the 73-72 lead. They would then hold on for the final 21 seconds for the win. Wiley held a 7pt lead at half time, but Philander Smith went on a big run in the 2nd Half to take the lead. The final four minutes of the game were a track meet though as both teams made big plays. None bigger though then Mullins shot with 21 seconds left. Michael Aiken led the Wildcats in scoring with 15pts, while Philander Smith got a game high 20pts from Aaron Johnson. Kenneth Perkins had a 14pt, 11reb double-double for Philander in the loss.
– In other Men’s Action:
- Coastal Georgia avenged an earlier home defeat to Middle Georgia State by going on the road and knocking off the Knights 67-65. Jordon Parks continues to impress as he dropped 18pts to go with 7rebs in the win!
– The Women’s side had a lot of blowouts last night as well, but Wiley Head Coach, Megan Leggett gets her first career victory as Wiley defeated Philander Smith on the Women’s side 74-65.
– ICYMI: Season 2, Episode 1 of NHR – The Podcast went live yesterday! Lots of great information and chatter with co-host Pat Derksen!
Brought to you by the leader in NAIA Men’s Basketball coverage, NAIA Hoops Report, The Road to Muni Podcast, formerly NHR – The Podcast, is a Podcast dedicated to NAIA Men’s Basketball. Each week Junior and Pat Derksen will help to paint the men’s basketball national championship picture as we discuss the action from the week prior, games to watch for the week ahead, interview coaches and much, much more! Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/naia-hoops-report/support
We are down to the final three games of the season as College of Idaho, Ottawa (AZ), Georgetown and Indiana Tech make up your NAIA Fab Four teams and tipoff on Saturday! In this episode, Junior and Pat dive deeper into the games, the paths of each team and more!
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Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/naia-hoops-report/support
