Tabor sweeps Spires on Senior Night

The Tabor College basketball teams swept the University of Saint Mary Saturday on senior night to improve to 18-0.

Mallory Zuercher drives into the lane and scores to give Tabor an 18-11 lead over Saint Mary during the second quarter Saturday. Zuercher scored 11 points in Tabor?s 73-56 victory.Women?Tabor overcame a slow start to defeat Saint Mary, 73-56, Saturday.

The Bluejays made just 39 percent of their shots from the field in the first half (11-28), but improved to 53 percent in the second (17-32).

In the first five minutes of the game, each team made only free-throws. Morgan Ediger scored the game?s first field goal at the 4:32 mark, followed by baskets by Taylor Deniston and Nicole Decker for an 8-4 Bluejay lead. Tabor extended that margin to 14-8 at the first break.

The Spires hit three three-pointers to trim Tabor?s lead to 18-17. Jurnee Reid scored to start a 6-0 Bluejay run, and Tabor held a five-point advantage at halftime, 26-21.

Both teams increased scoring production in the third quarter. Tabor scored more points than it did in the first half. Mallory Zuercher got things started with a three-point play, but Saint Mary drew within one a few times. A 6-0 run courtesy of Deniston, Kayla Wilgers and Amber Bonham gave Tabor some separation, 37-30. Wilgers scored eight of Tabor?s 17 points in the final 4:20, including a pair of treys. Kaleigh Troxell made a buzzer-beating three-pointer to give Tabor a double-digit, 54-44, lead.

Saint Mary scored to start the fourth quarter, briefly cutting the margin to single digits, but a Tena Loewen basket followed by three- and two-point baskets by Decker put Tabor in double figures for good. The Bluejays enjoyed their largest lead, 71-53, when Troxell made her second three-pointer with less than a minute to play, and the Bluejays cruised to the 17-point victory.

Reid led the Bluejays with 12 points. Zuercher added 11, and Wilgers 10. Malik Brooks drains a three-pointer to give Tabor a 64-50 lead over Saint Mary Saturday. Brooks made seven three-pointers and led all scorers with 28 points in Tabor?s 83-69 win.

Men?It was a tale of two halves Saturday as Tabor clinched the KCAC title with an 83-69 victory over Saint Mary.

In the first half, Tabor struggled to contain a red-hot Spire offense that shot nearly 61 percent from the field (14-23). At the same time, the Bluejays struggled to score, making just 35 percent of their shots (12-34).

Then, in the second half, Tabor made 58 percent of its shots (21-36), while limiting Saint Mary to 31 percent (10-32).

D?Marco Smith was the only Bluejay to score in the first six minutes of the game. His three treys kept Tabor within five of the Spires, 14-9.

The Bluejays continued to trail, and Saint Mary built a double-digit lead late in the half, 35-25. Malik Brooks made five of his eight first-half points in the final minute of action, including a three-pointer that brought Tabor within 36-30 at halftime.

Brooks continued to find success after intermission, providing an offensive spark. Brooks scored two- and three-point baskets in succession to open the half and later made his fourth three-pointer of the night to push Tabor in front, 44-42. Brooks hit his fifth three at the 12:43 mark.

After a Spire three-pointer, Tullio Parry scored to ignite a 10-0 run. Smith contributed six points to the effort, for a 61-47 Bluejay lead with 10:00 to play. Brooks made his final two threes less than 30 seconds apart. He was fouled on the second one and completed the four-point play, giving Tabor a 68-52 advantage.

Tabor enjoyed its largest lead of the night, 81-63, after Smith scored with 2:48 to go, and the Bluejays led by 14 when the final buzzer sounded.

Brooks led all scorers with 28 points on 9-for-15 shooting from the field, including 7-for-10 from beyond the arc. Smith added 22 points on 9-for-14 shooting, including 4-for-7 from three-point range. Lance Carter and Davaghndre Jones each scored 10.

Coming?Tabor will play at Southwestern Thursday.

For scores and updates during games, follow Janae on Twitter @janaerem13

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