(LEBANON, Ill., Feb. 17)—The McKendree University men's basketball team earned a share of the American Midwest Conference regular-season championship Tuesday with a 55-53 victory at home against Columbia College.
Senior guard Eric Palm (Machesney Park, Ill./Harlem) (Machesney Park, Ill./Harlem) scored 16 of his game-high 20 points in the first half, while junior forward Ken Detmer (Aviston, Ill./Breese Central) added 10 points to lead the Bearcats to their 16th consecutive win. McKendree, ranked No. 6 in the latest NAIA Division I poll, moved to 23-4 overall and kept its perfect AMC record intact at 11-0. Columbia, ranked No. 22 in the same poll, slips to 20-7 on the year and 7-4 in league play.
In addition, Palm surged past Mike Strobbe into seventh place on the Bearcats' all-time scoring list. Palm now has 1,885 points in his four seasons at McKendree.
The win by McKendree was its seventh in a row against Columbia, while it also ended the Cougars' seven-game win streak. The Bearcats swept both meetings in the regular season against Columbia. McKendree battled to a 68-65 win at Columbia on Jan. 20.
Columbia grabbed its only lead of the second half, 53-52, on a basket and free throw by Brett Hoskins with 2:05 to play. McKendree countered at the 1:15 mark when Detmer scored on a lay-up to put the Bearcats back in front, 54-53. A free throw by Palm with 28.9 seconds left extended the Bearcats' lead to two points, but Columbia held for the final shot. A three-point attempt by the Cougars' Jason Ellis came up short of the rim in the closing seconds, and sophomore forward Eric Hobbie (Vandalia, Ill./Vandalia) (Vandalia, Ill./Vandalia) grabbed the rebound to seal the victory for McKendree.
McKendree led by as many as 11 points in the second half at 45-34 on a lay-up by freshman forward Sean Rakers (New Baden, IL/Wesclin) (New Baden, Ill./Wesclin) with 11:47 to go.
The first half played out in similar fashion as McKendree jumped out to an 18-9 lead in the first eight minutes of play. Columbia used an 11-3 run to rally within 21-20 at the 6:47 mark, and eventually pulled even at 29-29 in the final minute of the period. But an off-balance jumper by Palm with three seconds remaining lifted the Bearcats to a 31-29 lead at the intermission.
Hobbie finished the night with a game-high 11 rebounds for McKendree, while Palm added three steals. Sophomore forward Brad Copelin (O'Fallon, Ill./O'Fallon) (O'Fallon, Ill./O'Fallon) and sophomore guard Andy Wolff (Centralia, Ill./Metro-East Lutheran) (Centralia, Ill./Metro-East Lutheran) each dished out three assists for the Bearcats.
Hoskins was the lone Columbia player to score in double digits with 12 points. Christian Lewis added eight points and a team-best 10 rebounds.
McKendree will look to lock up the AMC regular-season crown on Thursday with a league game at Williams Baptist College in Walnut Ridge, Ark. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m.
-McK-
