Pippa Passes, KY: The Alice Lloyd College Eagles battled for forty minutes before falling in the waning seconds to the visiting Asbury University Eagles, 79-76. The contest was held on Saturday, January 30th.
In the opening half, AU raced out to a quick 9-4 lead in the first four minutes only to watch Alice Lloyd senior guard Noah Young score five quick points to lead the host Eagles back.
The game would remain close with several ties. However, with the score knotted up at 35 apiece, Asbury closed with a short burst to lead 45-41 at intermission.
In the second half, the guests would sprint out of the dressing room with a 9-2 run in just three minutes. Suddenly, the central Kentucky squad led by double-digits (54-43).
Just as quickly, however, the hometown boys would fight back. Sophomore center Noah Caudill would sink 7 points during a 13-2 blitz, and the contest was tied at 56 apiece by the 13:24 mark.
Unfortunately, Asbury’s Leander Ridgeway would lead his club as they responded with a 14-5 answer. At 8:00, AU was in control, 70-61.
ALC refused to fold and fought back yet again. The Pippa Passes posse would rally to within two (76-74), then get a big play on defensive to get the ball back with only .28 remaining.
With the ball in their possession, ALC turned to Young. His drive in the paint just rolled off, but junior forward Will Philpot grabbed the miss and was fouled with .12 showing.
Philpot’s first attempt was good but the second bounded off. Asbury’s Ridgeway would then be fouled and drain both shots with 9.2 remaining in regulation (79-76).
In the end, and needing a trifecta to tie, the home Eagles would get the ball to Bryce Slone for a final contested jumper. However, his game-tying shot would bound off the rim, as time expired.
For the tough luck Eagles (12-4), three players reached double figures. They were led on the night by Young with a game-high 22 points. He sank 7-12 field goals (2-2 3FG) and a perfect 6-6 from the charity stripe. He added 3 assists. Tobler contributed 14 points on 7-10 shooting. He added 4 steals. Slone would wind up with 11 points. Philpot chipped in with 8 rebounds.
ALC shot a solid 52.6% (30-57) from the field and 38.5% (5-13) from long range. They sank 78.6% (11-14) from the foul line while adding 32 rebounds, 8 assists, and 7 steals.
For Asbury (13-3), Ridgeway had 20 points. His club finished shooting an impressive 54.2% (26-48) from the floor and 52.4% (9-17) from behind the arc. They sank 69.2% (18-26) from the foul line and also added 29 rebounds, 7 assists, and 11 steals.
ALC returns to action this week on Tuesday when they play host to Johnson University at 5 pm. This will be their only contest of the week.