(KANSAS CITY, Mo., March 19)—On a night when the McKendree University men's basketball team was clicking on all cylinders, senior guard Eric Palm (Machesney Park, Ill./Harlem) played his game at full throttle.
Palm (Machesney Park, Ill./Harlem) knocked down a game-high 33 points, including 20 in the first half, to lead the Bearcats to an 83-58 victory over Northwestern Oklahoma State University on Thursday evening in the opening round of the 2009 Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship. The 32-team event is being held at Municipal Auditorium in downtown Kansas City.
The win was the 22nd in the last 23 games for McKendree, the No. 7 seed in the NAIA field. McKendree is now 29-5 on the season. The Bearcats advance to Friday's second round play to face No. 10 seed Texas Wesleyan University, a 75-69 winner over Lindsey Wilson College (Ky.). Tip-off for Friday's contest is set for 9:45 p.m. CDT.
Palm became just the seventh player in McKendree program history to reach the 2,000-point mark for his career. Palm hit the milestone with a three-point field goal from the left wing with 4:24 left in the first half, giving the Bearcats a 34-14 advantage at the time. Palm now stands at 2,015 points, and is one point behind Paul Funkhouser for sixth place on the McKendree scoring chart.
“This is his third trip to the national tournament, and he plays well out here in Kansas City,” said McKendree head coach Harry Statham, who picked up his 994th career victory on Thursday. “He's been a big-time player for us, and this is a big-time stage for him. He helped get us going offensively tonight.”
Palm was 10-of-16 from the field, including four three-pointers, and was a perfect 9-of-9 from the three throw line. Sophomore forwards Eric Hobbie (Vandalia, Ill./Vandalia) (Vandalia, Ill./Vandalia) and Brad Copelin (O'Fallon, Ill./O'Fallon) (O'Fallon, Ill./O'Fallon), as well as freshman guard Karrington Pettiford (Florissant, MO/Christian Brothers) (Florissant, Mo./Christian Brothers), each registered 11 points for the Bearcats. Hobbie grabbed a team-leading seven rebounds, while sophomore guard Andy Wolff (Centralia, Ill./Metro-East Lutheran) (Centralia, Ill./Metro-East Lutheran) handed out a game-high four assists.
McKendree broke from the gates quickly, scoring the first 12 points in the first 2:31 of play. The Bearcats continued to increase their lead as Palm began to warm up. He scored seven straight points in one stretch to extend the McKendree margin to 30-13 with just under seven minutes left in the period. The trifecta that Palm hit for his 2,000th career point gave the Bearcats their first 20-point lead of the night before Northwestern Oklahoma pulled to within 40-25 at the half. In the first 20 minutes of play, McKendree shot 41.9 percent from the field (24-of-52).
In the second half, McKendree continued to add to its lead, boosting its margin to 65-36 after two free throws by Palm with 12:34 remaining. The Rangers used a 10-1 run to cut its deficit to 66-46 just four minutes later. But the Bearcats regained control and took their largest lead of the contest, 83-52, following a pair of foul shots by Pettiford at the 1:37 mark.
Northwestern Oklahoma State entered the contest with 247 three-point field goals, but McKendree limited the Rangers to just 1-of-13 shooting from beyond the arc. The Bearcats also forced 17 turnovers by Northwestern Oklahoma State.
“I was extremely pleased with our total team play tonight,” said Statham. “We came out fired up, aggressive and ready to play. There was balance throughout the lineup.”
Brandon Dixon led a balanced attack for Northwestern Oklahoma State (20-12) with 16 points and seven rebounds.
-McK-
