FORT WAYNE, Ind. – On Saturday evening, the No. 16 University of Saint Francis Cougars (24-9) faced off against the No. 20 Bethel University Threshers (28-7) in the championship game of the NAIA Opening Round but didn’t have enough in the second half as they fell 78-66.
As the game got underway, the Cougars started slow on offense as they were held scoreless through the first five minutes, while the Threshers ran up an early 6-0 lead. But after that, the Cougars regained their composure and went to work.
The Cougars got contributions from everyone in the first half as they spent most of the frame catching up to the Threshers. Through the game’s first 10 minutes, they still trailed 14-10, but continued their hard work in the frame’s final 10 minutes.
In the final minute and a half, the Cougars still trailed 28-24, but then junior guard Dan McKeeman nailed a three-pointer with 35 seconds remaining to put Saint Francis ahead 29-28, and a buzzer-beating jump shot from junior guard Antwaan Cushingberry gave the Cougars a 31-28 lead going into halftime.
During the first half, the Cougars went 7-for-14 from beyond the three-point line for a 50 percent shooting percentage, while holding the Threshers to just 3-of-9 from beyond the arc.
But come the second half, the script changed for the Cougars. The Threshers tied the game within the first minute and went ahead with a jump shot. Then the next several minutes went back-and-forth between both teams.
Then five minutes into the final frame the Cougars fell behind by four points and matters only worsened.
Halfway through the second half Saint Francis found themselves trailing 57-44 and had a lot of work to do to catch back up.
Through the game’s final 10 minutes, the Cougars continued to scratch and claw to close the gap and get back even with the Threshers but could not close to within six or less points in the game’s final 10 minutes.
Bethel made the free throws that they needed to make, and when it was all said and done, the Cougars were outscored 50-35 in the second half as their phenomenal 2021-22 season comes to an end.
Throughout the game, the Cougars shot 44 percent from the floor, 32 percent from beyond the three-point line, and 89 percent from the free throw line. Sophomore forward David Ejah led the team in scoring with 17 points and in rebounds with seven. Junior guard Antwaan Cushingberry followed suit with 16 points and four assists of his own.
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