KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The dream continues for the Ave Maria Men's Basketball team as the Gyrenes advanced to the Quarterfinals following a 102-98 win over the LSU Shreveport Pilots. At a combined 200 points, it was the highest scoring game in the Round of 16.
Ave Maria never trailed the Pilots on Friday, hitting the opening basket on a tip in from Alex Sherwood. LSU Shreveport tied the game twice in the opening minutes, but a quick 5-0 run off a layup from Sherwood and three-pointer from Jay White kept the Gyrenes in front by at least a possession for rest of the first half.
The Gyrenes continued to grow their lead, getting up by as many as 14 points. Michael Klekas knocked down a trifecta to give AMU that large lead.
However, the final two minutes of the half belonged to LSU Shreveport. The Pilots outscored the Gyrenes 9-3, bringing the margin down to eight points at halftime. Ave Maria's points during the run came off a three-pointer from Jonathan Effertz. As the teams went into their respective locker rooms, the Gyrenes led 46-38.
The second half opened with Ave Maria back in control of the game. The Gyrenes hit the first three baskets of the half while LSU Shreveport had to settle for free throws, turning an eight-point lead into an 11-point lead.
The lead remained in double figures for most of the first 10 minutes of the frame. Another Klekas jumper gave the Gyrenes their largest lead of the afternoon at 15 points with 11:58 left to play in the game.
Just like in the first half though, the Pilots did not go away quietly and made up all 15 points. Over the course of five minutes, LSU Shreveport outscored Ave Maria 24-9 and tied the game at 83. The Pilots hit nine of 11 shots during the run, including three shots from behind the arc. On the other side of the floor, Ave Maria went just 3-for-8 and turned the ball over four times.
Friday was starting to feel like the reverse of the second round game that sent Ave Maria to Kansas City, but the Gyrenes regained their composure and the lead.
"It's a game of runs. We know that and it's just how do you respond to your runs," said head coach Jamon Copeland after the game. "Energy throughout a game goes like this," he said while mimicking a line chart snaking up and down. "[When] mistakes or runs happen, you have two options: you can take your energy level up or down, and I thought our guys did an incredible job responding."
On the following possession, Jack Watkins drew a foul that sent him to the free throw line where he knocked down both shots from the charity stripe. LSU Shreveport tied it two more times before the Gyrenes finally broke away. Ave Maria turned in an 8-2 run with two baskets and four free throws while the Pilots missed four of five shots.
Ave Maria continued to hit their free throws in the final minutes as they iced the game and won 102-98.
It is the seventh time this season and second game in a row that the Gyrenes have hit triple digits. It is also the 25
th time over the last three seasons Ave Maria has scored 100 or more points, which is more than half the number of 100-point games in school history (49).
Klekas led the team with 26 points. Watkins was right behind with 21. Three other Gyrenes hit double figures as White had 17 points, Sherwood scored 14 and Effertz logged 13. Effertz led the team from behind the arc, hitting four of Ave Maria's 10 three-pointers. That put him over 300 career trifectas, becoming the first Gyrene to do so.
Three players logged double-doubles and Klekas and Watkins each had 11 rebounds and Sherwood had 10. It is the most players to log a double-double in game this season.
With the win, Ave Maria improves to 29-4 and moves on to the Quarterfinals.
Awaiting them are the Grace Lancers out of the Crossroads League. Grace finished the regular season ranked second in the country have been ranked in the Top 5 since the first poll was released on November 12. The Lancers are also the top seed in the Duer Quadrant and are making their fourth straight trip to the Quarterfinals. Saturday will be the first ever meeting between the Gyrenes and Lancers.
Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. eastern, 5 p.m. central, and the game will be streamed live on the Urban Edge Network.
