(LEBANON, Ill., Nov. 14) – 24 hours after celebrating head coach Harry Statham's 1,000th career victory, the No. 5 McKendree University Bearcats suffered their first loss of the season in a 66-64 loss to No. 11 Union University (Tenn.) in the final game of the McKendree Classic.
McKendree, now 5-1 overall, will travel to South Bend, Ind., on November 18th to face Indiana University-South Bend at 7 p.m. (EST).
Junior forward Eric Hobbie (Vandalia, Ill./Vandalia) (Vandalia, Ill./Vandalia) led McKendree with 17 points and was also named the tournament MVP. Sophomore forward Sean Rakers (New Baden, IL/Wesclin) (New Baden, Ill./Wesclin) contributed 16 points, while freshman guard John Steppe (Effingham, IL/St. Anthony) (Effingham, Ill./St. Anthony) had 10 points. Junior forward Brad Copelin (O'Fallon, Ill./O'Fallon) (O'Fallon, Ill./O'Fallon), senior forward Kenny Detmer (Aviston, Ill./Breese Central) (Aviston, Ill./Breese Central), and Steppe were all named to the All-Tournament team.
The Bearcats ked the majority of the first half, but a free throw by the Bulldog's Tacuma Alexander tied the game 25-25 with 3:35 remaining in the first half. Both teams battled back and forth through the remainder of the half, but the game was knotted at 29-29 at the half.
The Bearcats slowly built their lead in the second half and a jumper by Hobbie gave the Bearcats a 42-33 lead with 15 minutes remaining in the contest. Their lead slipped away behind 14 second-half turnovers and Union took a 54-53 lead on a layup by Tacuma Alexander with 5:23 remaining in the second half. The Bulldogs led 63-58 with 56 seconds remaining, but a three-pointer by Hobbie cut the deficit to 63-61 with 41 seconds left. A steal and layup by Steppe tied the game and the freshman guard made the ensuing free throw to give McKendree a 64-63 lead with 32 seconds left. Union held the ball for one shot and Greg Truvillion sank a wide-open three from the top of the arc with five seconds remaining to give the Bulldogs a 66-64 lead. Following a time out, the Bearcats inbounded the ball from mid-court, but the ball would be knocked out of bounds by a McKendree player to end the game.
Truvillion led all players with 21 points and 10 rebounds, while Alexander contributed 12 points for the Bulldogs. Both were named to the All-Tournament team, along with teammate Keith Tolliver.
-McK-
