2008 Woodie Awards
Men's basketball suffers double overtime loss
Douglas McEneaney
Issue date: 2/8/08 Section: Sports
This past weekend, the Lawrence University basketball team had their work cut out for them. Friday night, the Vikes traveled to the Green Knights of St. Norbert, who is ranked fourth in conference currently and Saturday night, the Vikes hosted the Pioneers of Carroll College, ranked second in conference.
There was a lot on the line for the Vikings in their game against St. Norbert. Prior to the game, the Vikings were ranked 19th in the country by D3Hoops.com, a top 25 ranking that Lawrence basketball has not seen since its #1 standing two years ago. Additionally, the Vikes were undefeated in conference and were riding a nine game winning streak.
In the opening minutes, the Vikings jumped to a 14-3 lead, a promising start for all the elements on the line. However, the lead soon disappeared as the Green Knights battled back, going on a 13-2 run minutes before the end of the first half. The Vikings ended the half trailing 24-30.
It seems there has been a consistent theme throughout the past few games for our Vikings -- they come out of that locker room with the mentality that losing is not an option. The Vikings began the second half with an 11-2 run, silencing the crowd and regaining the lead. Once that lead was theirs, they refused to give it back and did not for the rest of the game. The Knights constantly battled back, causing four ties throughout the second half. With a minute left in the game, the Knights were only down three points, but a pair of free throws for both junior Ryan Kroeger and senior Andy Hurley put the icing on the cake. The Vikings ended the game going 8-8 from the free throw line, giving them the 65-56 victory. Kroeger led all scorers with 15 points, while Hurley and junior Doug Kadison also contributed by scoring in double figures.
With the winning streak alive and the Top-25 standing still intact, the Vikings headed home for their game against rival Carroll College.
Saturday's game is one for the books. Even in the opening minutes, one could easily tell this game was going to be a battle. As one team scored, the other team scored. When there was a lead, the scores were close, and when the score was within one point, the lead often switched sides. There were four lead changes and no lead was greater than six points. The half ended with the Vikings leading 38-34.
There was a lot on the line for the Vikings in their game against St. Norbert. Prior to the game, the Vikings were ranked 19th in the country by D3Hoops.com, a top 25 ranking that Lawrence basketball has not seen since its #1 standing two years ago. Additionally, the Vikes were undefeated in conference and were riding a nine game winning streak.
In the opening minutes, the Vikings jumped to a 14-3 lead, a promising start for all the elements on the line. However, the lead soon disappeared as the Green Knights battled back, going on a 13-2 run minutes before the end of the first half. The Vikings ended the half trailing 24-30.
It seems there has been a consistent theme throughout the past few games for our Vikings -- they come out of that locker room with the mentality that losing is not an option. The Vikings began the second half with an 11-2 run, silencing the crowd and regaining the lead. Once that lead was theirs, they refused to give it back and did not for the rest of the game. The Knights constantly battled back, causing four ties throughout the second half. With a minute left in the game, the Knights were only down three points, but a pair of free throws for both junior Ryan Kroeger and senior Andy Hurley put the icing on the cake. The Vikings ended the game going 8-8 from the free throw line, giving them the 65-56 victory. Kroeger led all scorers with 15 points, while Hurley and junior Doug Kadison also contributed by scoring in double figures.
With the winning streak alive and the Top-25 standing still intact, the Vikings headed home for their game against rival Carroll College.
Saturday's game is one for the books. Even in the opening minutes, one could easily tell this game was going to be a battle. As one team scored, the other team scored. When there was a lead, the scores were close, and when the score was within one point, the lead often switched sides. There were four lead changes and no lead was greater than six points. The half ended with the Vikings leading 38-34.
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