SIUE falls to Central Michigan
By Joey Wagner
December 7, 2013
The SIUE Cougars (2-7) lost a heartbreaker to the Central Michigan Chippewas (6-3) Saturday night at the Vadalabene Center in Edwardsville. The Chippewas escaped Edwardsville with a one point lead by the final score of 65-64.
Donavine Stewart guards the inbound pass
Junior Michael Messer had the opportunity to be a hero for the Cougars, but failed to convert the put back at the buzzer off of Junior Cameron Craig’s missed shot. Messer scored 11 points on the night, but really came alive in the second half by contributing nine of his points.
The end of the second half was a back and forth battle with three lead changes in the final 24 seconds of the game. For the Chippewas, Sophomore Chris Fowler scored the final five points for the team, running his total to 23 for the game. Fowler also grabbed five rebounds and handed out six assists.
For SIUE, Junior Maurice Wiltz came off the bench and lead the way for the Cougar with a career high17 points and making five of his six three point attempts. Wiltz also had three rebounds and three assists for the Cougars.
The Chippewas showed a full-court press and trap from the tip, which initially gave the Cougars some trouble before they eased in to their offense.
“We didn’t go a great job in being aggressive in their press, in their changing defense, and then finally when we started doing it we got some easy looks,” Head Coach Lennox Forrester said.
Central Michigan drives to the hoop in the first half
The Cougars had three traveling violations in the first half before finally settling into their offense.
“I thought we had some silly turnovers to where we gave Central Michigan possession back, we’ve got to do a better job of not beating ourselves,” Forrester said.
The effort on the offensive boards for The Chippewas was crucial to their victory, outrebounding the Cougars 18-11 on the offensive glass. Central Michigan turned those offensive rebounds into 16-second chance points, compared eight for SIUE.
“We’ve got to do a better job of not beating ourselves, I thought turnovers and offensive boards definitely do that,” Forrester said.
Junior Keaton Jackson had a game high eight rebounds for the Cougars while also contributing seven points and two blocks. Jackson was often the tallest one on the court, causing major mismatches for the Chippewas.
“I think he’s doing some good things for us, I still want him to get some more post touches down low, he’s a work in progress, but I like the direction he’s going in to,” Forrester said.
Mid-way through the second half, Senior Ray Lester got the fans in the Vadalabene Center back into the game with his offensive rebound which lead to a miraculous put back and the foul to give the Cougars an opportunity for a three-point play. Though Lester did not convert the play, the fans appreciated the effort.
Ray Lester shoots the free throw
“When Ray had that basket where he threw the ball up and made it, people really got loud in there, it was awesome,” Team Manager Jeren Mcghee said.
Central Michigan stayed true to their scouting report as a three-point shooting team. The Chippewas shot 23 percent from behind the arc, going seven for 30.
“I saw in the scouting report that they shot a lot, they really lived up to that, they just don’t shoot it for a high percentage, I think we were ready for them to shoot,” Mcghee said.
The Cougars go on a three-game road trip before coming home to play Robert Morris-Springfield on December 29th. From there, the Cougars start conference play against the rest of the Ohio Valley Conference.