CHADRON, Neb. -- There were nine lead changes and 21 ties during the Chadron State and Black Hills State nail-biter Thursday night, when the homestanding Eagles pulled off an 88-86 upset of the No. 10 ranked Yellow Jackets in the final regular season game for both teams.
Back-to-back to field goals by center
Porter Anderson put the Eagles ahead 87-84 with 20 seconds remaining. The first was a dunk after he'd taken a handoff from teammate
Josh Robinson as they converged beneath the basket. The second came after Anderson grabbed an offensive rebound and tapped his shot off the glass.
Black Hills All-American Joel Scott answered with a layup 10 seconds later to make it a one-point game for the umpteenth time.
When the ball was put back in play, the Yellow Jackets immediately fouled CSC's
Marcus Jefferson. He made the first free shot, but
uncharacteristically missed the second. That meant the visitors still had a chance. Matt Ragsdale took the shot from deep in the left corner, but it went over the net and hit off the back side of the rim as time expired.
It was Chadron State's first win over a nationally ranked team since the Eagles defeated Metro State 90-77 on Jan. 8, 2000, when the Roadrunners were No. 3 in the NCAA Division II poll and went on to win the national championship.
CSC Coach
Shane Paben said the game "elite" and called the play "high class."
The Eagles finished the regular season at 19-9 overall and 16-6 in the RMAC while Black Hills is 24-4 and 18-4. Both will be among the eight teams in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference playoffs that begin Tuesday, Feb. 28. As probably the No. 2 or 3 seed, the Yellow Jackets will open the playoffs at home while the Eagles are set as the No. 5 seed and it's expected their first-round game will be at Colorado School of Mines in Golden.
Scott was the game's top scorer with 29 points while shooting 11 of 16 from the field and seven of nine at the free throw line. Ragsdale sank four 3-pointers in the first half and finished with 18 points, while Adam Moussa added 16 for Black Hills.
Five players scored in double digits for the Eagles, led by Robinson's 26 points on 10 of 18 from the field and six of eight at the line. Both Anderson and
Isaiah Wyatt scored 19 points,
Bryce Latimer had 12 and Jefferson 11.
The Eagles shot 53.5% (29-54) from the field and Black Hills 52.1% (36-68). As has been the situation most of the season, the quick and aggressive Eagles outscored their opponent significantly from the free throw line. They were 25 of 29 and Black Hills was nine of 11.
The coach was not happy with some of the Eagles play in the first half. He said they had transition problems while the Yellow Jackets went on a 12-0 run that included three fast break baskets and had a 29-18 lead midway in the half.
About five minutes later, the Eagles went on an 11-3 spurt that included 3-pointers by Wyatt and Jefferson to help cut the Yellow Jackets' lead to 44-41 at halftime.
Neither team ever led by more than four points in the second half when six of the ties and 13 of the lead changes occurred.
"It was a good night for Chadron State," Paben said. "The crowd was amazing, we had a great environment. Black Hills has a terrific team, and our team has gotten better as we've kept working."
Black Hills State—Joel Scott 11-16 7-9 29, Matt Ragsdale 7-14 0-0 18, Adam Moussa 7-15 0-0 16, Ryker Cisarik 3-4 2-2 8, PJ Hayes 3-8 0-0 7, Sindou Cisse 3-6 0-0 6, Caelin Hearne 1-5 0-9 2. Totals: 35-67 (7-27) 9-11 86 points, 29 rebounds, 9 turnovers.
Chadron State—
Josh Robinson 10-18 6-8 26,
Porter Anderson 7-9 5-5 19,
Isaiah Wyatt 5-10 6-6 19,
Bryce Latimer 4-11 4-4 12,
Marcus Jefferson 3-4 3-4 11. Totals: 29-54 (5-10) 88 points, 31 rebounds, 14 turnovers.
Black Hills State 44 42 ----86
Chadron State 41 47 ----88
3-pointers: BHSU—Ragsdale 4-10, Moussa 2-5, Hayes 1-6. CSC—Wyatt 3-6, Jefferson 2-2.
