The Briar Cliff mens basketball team got back in the win column Wednesday night with a 100-90 win over #17 Mount Marty by way of 54 points from senior Jackson Lamb. The single-game point total puts him second in the NAIA DII this season and tied for fourth in the Charger record book next to BC great Rolando Frazer.
“The history of Briar Cliff basketball is something special,” said Lamb. “The feeling of having my name beside Rolando Frazers is something I never thought would ever happen. I am blessed.”
54 points is the third-best scoring mark by a GPAC mens player in the history of the conference. Lamb bested his 49-point output from the first contest of the season and added 11 rebounds for the fourth double-double of his senior campaign. He now sits at 1,721 career points, passing Charger assistant coach Bryan Forbes career total of 1,729, and is in 11th on Briar Cliffs all-time list.
“Jackson was unbelievable for us tonight,” said head coach Mark Svagara. “When he gets it going, hes as good as anybody and he had it going tonight.”
The victory gets the Cliff back to winning ways after a six-game losing streak and moves the team to an even 12-12 on the year and 3-11 in GPAC play.
“I couldnt tell you a better feeling than winning,” Lamb added. “It feels so good to get back to playing Briar Cliff basketball.”
With 6:30 on the clock in the first half, BC trailed by 12 points, but a 19-7 run by the Chargers to finish the period tied to game at 44-all. The Chargers were able to get out and lead the majority of the second half, but Mount Marty kept the game close and forced a battle to the final seconds.
Ethan Freidel added 16 points to the Charger cause and had eight rebounds and six assists. Jaden Kleinhesselink chipped in eight points and gave out four assists and had BCs lone steal of the night.
Im happy for our guys to go on the road and get a big win,” Svagera added. “Weve had our struggles the last couple of weeks and our guys are doing a really good job of sticking together and continuing to work. We saw the benefit of that tonight.”
The Blue and Gold shot 46 percent from the field in the contest and 42 percent from the 3-point line. The Cliff outrebounded its opponent 43-38 and had a 16-12 advantage in assists.
Mount Martys Chris King put up 40 points and was joined in double figures by Ryan Warren (12) and Keegan Savary (11). Saba Gvedashvilli had 11 boards and Warren tallied a team-high four assists.
Briar Cliff will return to the Newman Flanagan Center for a six-game home stand to finish out the regular season. The Chargers will host #1 Morningside Saturday at 4 p.m.
A balanced Charger attack helped the Briar Cliff womens basketball team to an 80-61 victory over Mount Marty Wednesday in Yankton, S.D. Alyssa Carley led the way for BC with 17 points, followed by Konnor Sudmann with 16, Payton Slaughter with 13 and Sarah Dreckman with 12.
After going back-and-forth through the first five minutes of the contest, BC pulled away from the Lancers with an 18-5 run to end the first period. The Cliff started the scoring stretch from a 7-7 tie with a 2-point jumper by Sudmann. Breanna Allen forced a steal on the next possession that resulted in a pair of made free throws by Sudmann, then another Allen steal helped Taylor Lamprecht hit a 2-point jumper and draw the foul. Allen hit a 3-point bucket to put BC up 17-7 and the visitors never looked back, leading by 13 after one period and 23 at halftime.
BC led by as many as 27 points in the second half and cruised to the 19-point victory.
Madelyn Deitchler was another key for the Cliff, grabbing 12 rebounds and chipping in eight points. Slaughter and Allen each had four steals while Carley and Sudmann each dished out four assists.
Jamie Tebben had 18 points and seven rebounds to lead the Lancer squad. Hannah Williams added 10 points.
Briar Cliff shot 47 percent from the field and from long range, compared to Mount Martys 31 percent from the field and 23 percent from the 3-point line. Dreckman was 2-for-2 from beyond the arc and Slaughter hit 3-of-4.
The Cliff moves to 7-16 on the year and 4-11 in GPAC play. The Chargers will host #7 Morningside Saturday at the Newman Flanagan Center.
