Marshalltown, IA—Leading 63-62 with just over six minutes to play, the Marshalltown Community College Men's Basketball team faltered down the stretch against Ellsworth Community College as the Panthers stole an 82-74 victory over the Tigers at the Student Activity Center on Saturday night.
Tyler Miller (Louisville, KY/22ft Academy) and Amir Maddred (Camden, NJ/Camden) each scored 14 points for the Tigers in the losing effort. Nick Cross (Beverly, MA/Beverly) came off the bench to score 11 while Vincent Lasley (Tama, IA/South Tama) grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds.
The Tigers trailed by as many as 12 points midway through the first half but closed out the half on a 21-9 run as the two teams went into the locker room tied at 36. Eight different players reached the scoring column for the Tigers in the first frame.
MCC kept the momentum going to open the second frame with a 9-2 run to jump ahead 45-38. Miller sunk a pair of free throws to keep the Tigers on top 50-45, but the Panthers rattled off six straight regain the lead. Guilherme Verardo (Sao Paulo, Brazil/Esporte Clube Pinheiros) drained a three to put MCC in front 60-58 and three free throws gave MCC the one-point edge. Costly turnovers and a pair of quick three-point shots from the Panthers sunk MCC in the closing minutes.
The Tigers shot just 42.6 percent from the floor and committed 19 turnovers in the loss despite winning the battle on the glass with a 38-34 rebounding margin.
MCC hosts Quakerdale Prep Academy at 7:00 PM on Jan. 13.
