The Tabor College men?s hope for a KCAC tournament title ended Saturday as the Bluejays dropped a 74-60 decision to No. 1 seed Sterling College in the semifinals.
The Bluejays finished with an 18-11 overall record after going 11-7 in the conference.
Prior to the game, coach Micah Ratzlaff said the Bluejays would have to be excellent in all aspects of the game to beat Sterling on their home court.
Unfortunately for Tabor, the Bluejays suffered a scoring drought in the first half of the game that led to a 15-point halftime deficit they could not overcome.
Sterling started with a 9-0 run. The Warriors posted their largest lead of the game at 38-15 with just under six minutes left in the half. Boosted by four three-pointers, the Warriors led the Bluejays, 41-26, at intermission.
But Tabor did not give up. The Bluejays whittled the Warriors? lead until a dunk from Damon Dechant brought the Bluejays within 10 points, 47-37.
The Bluejays battled the Warriors until another basket from Dechant brought the Bluejays within eight points.
But that was as close as Tabor came. Sterling found its footing again and regained their double-digit lead despite the Bluejays? determined efforts.
With the 14-point win, the Warriors advanced to the KCAC championship in Wichita Monday night.
Dechant, a senior, went out with a bang with 31 points. He also led his team for the season, racking up 330 points, as well as contributing 147 rebounds.
Sophomore Lawson Kingsley had 11 points for the game and 293 points for the season.
Sophomore Ryan Chippeaux was the team?s third-leading scorer for the season with 222 and junior Dylan Clark-Kane?able was fourth with 200.
KCAC quarterfinals?Tabor stunned Friends in the tournament quarterfinals Wednesday with a late comeback that led to a 69-59 victory.
The Bluejays played before a loud and excited home-court crowd.
?It wasn?t pretty,? coach Micah Ratzlaff said afterward, ?but, my goodness, we?ll take it.?
The Bluejays came out looking like the team that contended for the top spot in the KCAC all season. They did not shut down the Falcon offense, but they slowed it enough to build a 26-19 lead with 8:20 left in the half.
But Tabor?s scoring slowed, enabling the Falcons to creep up. Friends tied the game with just under four minutes remaining, then pulled ahead, 32-30, a couple minutes later. Tabor tied it again with 50 seconds left, but a Falcons free throw put them ahead, 33-32, at halftime.
Tabor struggled to score early in the second half, and the Falcons capitalized on the opportunity. Friends led by several baskets and TC looked more like the team that lost the final four regular season games.
But the Bluejays narrowed the Falcons? lead to five with under 11 minutes left in the game. Friends responded with another surge and Tabor still trailed, 54-48, with a little over six minutes left. The Bluejays needed a miracle and they got it.
Phillip Jiminez sank a three-pointer with 5:24 left, electrifying the home crowd. Seconds later, Kyle Wallace drained another three, tying the game 54-54 with five minutes left. A mere 30 seconds later, Ryan Chip?peaux scored to put Tabor on top, 56-54.
Friends never reclaimed the lead. Tabor played like it did for most of the season to extend the lead to 10 points at the end.
?I kept telling myself these guys can?t go out like this,? Ratzlaff said, referring to the late-season slump. ?We played too good of basketball for such a long time for that to happen?at the end of the year you just lose five straight and you go. This win is huge for us.?
He said the victory will keep his team excited about the future.
?You could tell how badly they wanted to play well again at the beginning of it,? he said. ?We knew guys would have to make plays and they did that down the stretch. The two guys who have really struggled at the three, Kyle Wallace and Phillip Jiminez, made some really big shots.?
Ratzlaff said once the guards took the defensive pressure off Damon Dechant, he was able to make plays. Dechant led Tabor with 18 points, with Wallace and Chippeaux each contributing 11.
?I love this group,? Ratzlaff said. ?They love each other, they work hard, they do things for the right reasons. That?s always been there.?