Bluejay men give Walsh University battle to the end

Written by Tom Stoppel

Tuesday, 15 March 2005

The Tabor College men's basketball team culminated a long season on Thursday by traveling to Point Lookout, Mo., to battle seventh-seeded Walsh University from Ohio in the opening round of the 14th NAIA Division II Men's Basketball Championship. Although a huge underdog, Tabor stayed close but eventually lost 68-62. "We played well, we just didn't shoot well," coach Don Brubacher said. "We played well defensively and out-rebounded them." Early in the game, it was evident Tabor would have to control the massive body and nimble skills of former Barton County Community College and Cincinnati University standout Robert Whaley. At 6-foot, 10-inches and more than 250 pounds, Whaley was a physical specimen who also had terrific basketball skills. "He's a player you can't expect to take everything away from because he does have a reasonably good shooting range," Brubacher said. "Most of his points came from outside of 10 feet and that's the most we could hope for, to have him playing away from the basket." Tabor began the game on a cold streak, falling behind 7-0. The Bluejays finally broke the Missouri ice when Grant Brubacher scored with just over five minutes elapsed off the clock. Although not a one-man team, Whaley was a solitary wrecking crew, pouring in 13 first-half points, grabbing five rebounds and blocking three shots. But behind Martin de Boer's eight points and a pair of Jared Reese free throws with 1:52 remaining, Tabor took its first lead of the contest 27-26. But Walsh (23-8) answered with a short 6-0 burst and took a 32-27 lead at halftime. "We played hard and made a good effort to execute our game plan," Brubacher said. "I think the players came in with a good attitude about the game." In the second half, Tabor hung close and trailed by a single point, 38-37, with 15:55 to play until the Cavaliers pieced together a 17-4 run fueled by three 3-point baskets that extended Walsh's lead to 14 points at the 7:18 mark. "We were playing zone at the time and they changed things and we broke down and on the other end, we didn't convert at all," Brubacher said. "We went from down five to a 14-point deficit. "We followed a typical pattern for us that when the other team starts to score, we rush on our offensive end and when we miss, they produce more points faster." Trailing by 14 with just over seven minutes to play, Tabor was forced to alter its defensive strategy and play catch up. "I thought we defended well but we had to change our defense in an effort to make up ground," Brubacher said. "I feel like we could have held them to under 60 points for the game and with a team of their offensive ability, I think that's truly an outstanding defensive effort." But Tabor didn't fold its tent. Behind the aggressive play of point guard Grant Brubacher who registered six straight points, Tabor whittled the lead to five points, 61-56, with 2:27 to play on a Brad Gattis free throw. "Almost all of Grant's offense came in the last five minutes of the game," Brubacher said. "Walsh was given license to do anything they wanted to do defensively to guard Grant." Ahead by just five, Walsh found sufficient free-throw shooting down the stretch, converting six straight and seven of ten, to hold the Bluejays at bay as Walsh moved into the next round with the six-point win. Whaley led the Cavalier scoring attack with 24 points while adding eight rebounds and six blocked shots. Grant Brubacher led Tabor with 13 points followed by Brad Gattis and de Boer with 12 each. Tabor hit just 22 of 61 field goal attempts (36.1 percent) in the contest while holding the Cavaliers' percentage to a meager 44.2 (23-52). "We just shot the ball too poorly to win this game," Brubacher said. The Bluejays connected on four of 17 (23.5 percent) 3-point attempts while Walsh was 5-for-12 (41.7 percent). Tabor made 14 of 19 (73.7 percent) free throws compared to a frigid 17-for-31 (54.8 percent) for Walsh. Tabor won the rebounding battle, 39-37, behind seven boards each from Gattis and Brubacher. With the loss, Tabor finished its season with a 20-10 record and another KCAC regular-season championship. "I think we have to congratulate our players for the effort they made," Brubacher said. "Obviously we played our best basketball at the end of the year and that's something you have to feel good about." Coach Brubacher looks to build off the 2004-05 campaign with a solid core of returning letter winners. "I think our style of basketball requires an ongoing effort to play as well as possible," Brubacher said. "You have to build from year to year and not within just an individual year. "I think we made more progress this year than we've made in any other year since I've come back to coaching," he added. "We built a better foundation than any other time."

Last Updated ( Tuesday, 15 March 2005 )

 

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