Free throws doom NEO

March 22, 2008 01:03 am

— By Monty Franks
sports@joplinglobe.com
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Six missed free throws in the final 25 seconds doomed the Northeastern A&M Golden Norsemen in a 76-75 loss to Indian Hills, Iowa on Friday afternoon in an elimination game of the Men’s Division I NJCAA basketball championships.
“Free throw shooting has been our Achilles Heel all year and it picked a bad time to rear its ugly head,” said Dustin Grover, NEO coach. “You really hate to have your season end in such a difficult way.”
With NEO leading 75-74, freshman Chase Elliott missed both ends of a two-shot foul with 0:28 remaining in the game.
Indian Hills point guard Dwight Hardy canned a 15-foot jump shot with just nine seconds remaining to give the Warriors a 76-75 lead.
On NEO’s next possession, sophomore point guard Dominique Gaines was fouled with a mere 03.5 on the clock. Gaines missed both foul shots.
Golden Norse sophomore forward Kenneth Clayton stole the Warriors’ inbounds pass and was fouled by Christopher Vines as the buzzer sounded.
The officiating crew converged on the scorer’s table and required approximately 10 minutes to determine that the foul occurred before the final buzzer and that 0:01 should be put on the clock.
Clayton stepped to the free throw line and missed both shots as the Indian Hills bench erupted in jubilation.
“We just couldn’t make the shots when we needed them,” Grover said. “But I’m proud of the way our guys played with the heart and determination of a champion.”
The game poorly for NEO. Indian Hills received seven straight points by Dwight Buycks along with a five points by Rico Harris and a layup by LaRon Dendy to build a 14-0 lead in the first five minutes.
“We came out extremely flat and played like we didn’t want to be here,” Grover said. “So I started subbing just to get some enthusiasm going.”
Clayton scored NEO’s first 10 points and Delawn Armwood added a layup to rally the Norsemen to a 16-12 deficit midway through the first half.
After tying the score at 26-26 and 30-30, the Norsemen trailed 31-30 at halftime following a solo free throw by Buycks just before the buzzer.
During the second half, the lead changed hands eight times and featured three ties before the dramatic finish.
Six Golden Norsemen scored in double figures led by Gaines with 15, Reggie Mathis 13, Clayton 12, Tulio Cobos 11, Cicero Gonzaga 10 and Elliott 10.
Hardy connected on 12-of-20, including 6-of-12 from 3-point range, and 6-of-8 at the free throw line for a game-high 36 points for Indian Hills. Buycks contributed 23 points.
Coach Jeff Kidder’s Warriors carry a 27-9 record into today’s 2 p.m. fifth-place game against Eastern Arizona.
NEO, the Region II champion, finished 27-9.