ST. LOUIS (12-3) – The Banana Slugs played their final game of the 33rd Annual Lopata Classic as they took on Rhodes College in the consolation championship. The Banana Slugs won the nip and tuck contest 111-109 in overtime over the Lynx.
Both teams lost their last game. The Banana Slugs lost 84-69 to Washington University in St. Louis in Santa Cruz yesterday while Rhodes lost to NCAA Division III #21 University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire 120-94 yesterday in St. Louis.
In the first half, the Banana Slugs started the game on a 6-0 run capped by a Will Crain layup with 17:18 left in the half. The Lynx responded with an 8-0 run of their own capped by a Kendrick Ashby layup with 15:23 left in the half. The Lynx would gain their largest lead of the half at four, at 19-15, on an Andrew Lowrie three pointer with 11:56 left in the half. The Banana Slugs would then go on a 10-2 run, capped by a Corey Cilia layup with 9:06 left in the half, to take the lead at 25-21. The Banana Slugs would gain their largest lead of the ballgame at nine, at 42-33, on a Ben Dorfman layup with 5:08 left in the half. The Banana Slugs led 48-45 at the halftime intermission.
In the second half, the two teams would play back and forth basketball. The Banana Slugs would gain their largest lead of the half at five, at 55-50, on a Kyle Creighton jumper with 17:22 left in regulation. From that point, the Lynx would outscore the Banana Slugs 21-15 over the next 6:08 of clock time to give the Lynx a 71-70 advantage. The Lynx gain their largest lead of the game at ten, at 94-84, on an Owen Galvin three pointer with 5:19 left in regulation. The Banana Slugs then went on a 11-0 run, capped by an Adam Marlow layup with 2:31 left in regulation, to take the lead at 95-94. The teams would trade baskets back and forth. The Banana Slugs would take a three point lead, at 102-99, on a Crain layup with 1:08 left. The Lynx would get back in the game and would take the lead at 103-102 on a Brennan Sullivan jumper with twenty five seconds left. One second later, the Banana Slugs would tie the game at 103-103 on a Marlow free throw. After a Banana Slugs' foul, JJ Weir would miss two free throws with five seconds left giving the Banana Slugs one more chance. Crain would miss a buzzer-beating three pointer and the game would go to overtime.
In overtime, the two teams would trade alternating pairs of free throws for the first three minutes of the overtime session. The two teams would trade baskets for the next minute of clock time. After the Lynx tied the game at 109-109 on an Anesu Nyawata jumper with fifty-seven seconds left, the Banana Slugs would have their first chance at taking the lead with thirty four seconds left on a Creighton three pointer. The shot was missed but Tre Weston got the rebound. The Banana Slugs ran the clock down and with three seconds left, Marlow hit a jumper to give the Banana Slugs the lead for good at 111-109. The Lynx would have the final chance on a Sullivan three-pointer but the shot was missed. The Banana Slugs would win the game 111-109 ending their four-game losing streak.
Crain had a game high twenty-seven points to lead the Banana Slugs. Sullivan, off the bench, had thirteen points for the Lynx. Cilia and Weston both had seventeen points, Creighton had fifteen and Marlow had fourteen points for the Banana Slugs in the win. Daniel Darst and Ian Harrison, off the bench, had eleven each and Nyawata and Weir had ten apiece for the Lynx.
The Banana Slugs shot 53.5% (38-71) from the field, 27.3% (3-11) from the three-point line and was 64% (32-50) from the free throw line. The Lynx shot 46.3% (37-80) from the field, 30.6% (11-36) from the three-point line and 63.2% (24-38) from the foul line. UC Santa Cruz's defense forced twenty-one turnovers by the Lynx scoring nineteen points off the turnovers while the Lynx defense forced twenty-eight turnovers by UC Santa Cruz and scored twenty-eight points off the turnovers. UC Santa Cruz outrebounded Rhodes 57-35 while the Banana Slugs had thirty-one more points fast break points (40-9) than did the Lynx.
The next game for the Banana Slugs is next Saturday as they take on California Institute of Technology in Pasadena at 5 pm.