The Raven Men's Basketball team remained unbeaten in Heart of America Conference play Saturday, taking down the Mount Mercy University Mustangs 97-90 in an offensive battle in Atchison.
The No. 7 Ravens (17-2, 13-0 Heart) picked up their 16th straight win, but had to battle to get it. The Mustangs held a 45-43 lead at halftime but the Ravens came out determined to get to the basket in the second half. That commitment to getting inside paid off as the Ravens shot 59.3 from the field in the second half and finished shooting 57.9 percent in the game.
The Ravens opened up the second half with three-straight baskets in the paint – two by Colby Nickels and one by Eric Krus – to move in front 49-45. The Mustangs fought back to take a 61-58 lead, but baskets by Jayden Temme and Jaiden Bristol pushed the Ravens back in front, 62-61.
The Mustangs again grabbed a lead on a 3-pointer by Christian Reischauer, 67-66, but Adam Kutney buried a 3-pointer on the Ravens end. After the teams were knotted up at 69-69, Kutney scored a bucket in the paint and the Ravens held the lead the remainder of the game.
Kutney finished with 28 points and 10 rebounds, Nickels had 12 points and 13 boards, Thomas O'Connor scored 13 points and Krus had 20 points. The Ravens committed 11 turnovers in the first half but took care of the ball in the second half, finishing the game with 17 turnovers.
The Mustangs entered the game shooting 40 percent from behind the 3-point line, but finished at 36 percent on Saturday. The Ravens were 50 percent from deep, connecting on 11-of-22 attempts. The focus on getting inside in the second half benefited the Ravens at the free throw line, too. After shooting two free throws in the first half, the Ravens converted 18-of-22 shots in the second half.
The Ravens also used their size to their advantage, pulling down 38 rebounds compared to 24 boards for the shorter Mustangs.
The win completes a challenging week for the Ravens as they won three games in six days. They'll have a short break before taking the court again at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 24 at home against (24) Central Methodist University.
