BOX SCORE
(LEBANON, Ill., Nov. 13)—The McKendree University men's basketball team battled back from a 12-point halftime deficit, but could not hold off Union University down the stretch as the visiting Bulldogs posted a 69-63 win Saturday in the final game of the McKendree Classic.
The Bearcats used a 16-3 run to take a 63-62 lead with 2:21 remaining, but Union scored the final seven points of the contest to register the victory. McKendree, the No. 8-ranked team in the NAIA Division I pre-season poll, slips to 2-3 overall, while No. 10 Union remains undefeated at 3-0.
Senior guard Andy Wolff (Centralia, Ill./Metro-East Lutheran) (Centralia, Ill./Metro-East Lutheran) led a balanced attack for McKendree with 14 points, while sophomore guard John Steppe (Effingham, IL/St. Anthony) (Effingham, Ill./St. Anthony) chipped in with 12 points. Senior forward Brad Copelin (O'Fallon, Ill./O'Fallon) (O'Fallon, Ill./O'Fallon) and junior forward Sean Rakers (New Baden, IL/Wesclin) (New Baden, Ill./Wesclin) each narrowly missed a double-double in the contest. Copelin finished with 11 points and nine rebounds, while Rakers posted 10 points and nine rebounds.
After trailing 46-36 at the half, McKendree opened the second on a 9-2 burst to pull within 48-45 with 13:08 left. Union countered with an 11-2 run to take its largest lead of the period, 59-47, midway through the half.
A lay-up and free throw by Rakers started the Bearcats' comeback down the stretch. Copelin capped the 16-3 run with a pair of free throws with 2:21 remaining to give McKendree a 63-62 advantage. The Bearcats turned up the pressure defensively during the spurt, holding the Bulldogs to just a field goal and free throw over an eight-minute stretch.
Union's Skyler Vaden scored on a driving lay-up to push the Bulldogs back in front, 64-63, with 1:53 to play. Following a McKendree turnover, Antoine Joseph scored on a tip-in to extend the Union lead to three points. The Bulldogs' Samuel Danache sealed the victory by making four free throws in the final 23 seconds of the contest.
C.J. Davis led all scorers with 18 points for Union. Stan McNeil added 14 opints as Vaden chipped in with 10 points. Davis was named the Classic's Most Valuable Player. Rakers and Wolff were McKendree's representatives on the All-Tournament team.
McKendree will be on the road Tuesday for a non-conference game against NCAA Division II member University of Southern Indiana. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. in Evansville, Ind.
