BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – The ninth-ranked Calvin University men's basketball team lost 82-81 on a buzzer-beater to second-ranked UW-Platteville in the Knights' season opener in a battle of top 10 teams at the Jack Sikma Invite hosted by Illinois Wesleyan University on Friday night.
Calvin (0-1) looked to have control late with a 78-67 lead with under two minutes to play, but a furious rally by UW-Platteville (1-0) cut the deficit to one in the final seconds, and Logan Pearson made a corner jump shot off a missed free throw as the final buzzer sounded to give the Pioneers the win.
The Knights held the lead for more than 18 minutes in the first half with the help of nine points from
Trevin Winkle (McBain, Mich./Northern Michigan Christian), but a 6-0 run by the Pioneers to end the half tied the game 28-28 heading into the break.
UW-Platteville looked to take control early in the second half and built a lead as big as eight (48-40) with 12:25 to play, but the Knights hung around and chipped away until a five-point possession on a Winkle three-pointer and two
Ty Horky free throws (Manchester, Mich./Manchester) with 7:31 to play sparked a 15-0 run that gave Calvin a 73-63 edge with under five minutes remaining.
Calvin held that lead into the final minutes, but the Pioneers' defensive pressure forced two turnovers, while the Knights struggled from the free throw line in the final two minutes to help keep the game within reach.
With the Knights leading 81-78 after a
Uchenna Egekeze (Huntley, Ill./Huntley) free throw with 24 seconds remaining, UW-Platteville cut the deficit to one on a layup by Pearson with 17 seconds to play. After a Calvin turnover, Pearson was fouled with three seconds left on the Pioneers' final possession with a chance to put UW-Platteville ahead at the line.
After missing both free throws, Pearson was able to grab the loose rebound out of a scrum in the corner and made the game-winning basket from inside the three-point line to give the Pioneers the win.
Egekeze had a big night for Calvin on the offensive end, finishing with 23 points on 7-11 shooting from the field (9-12 from the free throw line). Winkle added nine more second-half points to give him 18 for the game and also led the Knights with nine rebounds.
Horky (Manchester, Mich./Manchester) added nine points off the bench for the Knights, who shot 42.6 percent from the field and made 11 of 25 attempts (44.0 percent) from beyond the three-point arc.
NEXT UP: Calvin men's basketball will return to action at the Jack Sikma Invite tomorrow (Saturday, November 9) when it plays another game against a ranked opponent in 24th-ranked Cal Lutheran at 5:00 PM CT.
