Mount Mercy locks down York for AII tournament championship, 74-61

CEDAR RAPIDS – A rousing debut, but at the same time, a satisfying farewell.

The Mount Mercy men's basketball team celebrated its one season as an independent in style, posting a comfortable 74-61 victory over York (Neb.) in the Association of Independent Institutions championship game Sunday night at the U.S. Cellular Center.

'One of the last things I say before we come out every single game is, 'We versus me,'' Mount Mercy Coach Aaron Jennings said. 'We did that and we're the champs.'

Mount Mercy left the Midwest Collegiate Conference after last season and will join the Heart of America Athletic Conference with the 2016-17 academic year.

Three tournament wins in three days (and 15 of 17 overall) means the 17th-ranked Mustangs (25-7) likely improved their seed for the NAIA Division II Men's Basketball Tournament, which begins March 9 in Point Lookout, Mo.

'We play in this tournament, all of us as independents, to get a sense of what the national tournament is going to be,' Jennings said. 'You've got to be able to play three games back to back to back, and we showed that we're up to the challenge.'

York (23-9) presented a significant offensive challenge to Mount Mercy. The teams combined for 202 points in their Jan. 16 meeting (won 103-99 by Mount Mercy), and York forward Cameron Coleman was fresh from a 40-point performance in a Saturday semifinal.

The Mustangs limited Coleman to a single field goal on four attempts for 15 points, and its 61 points overall was York's second-lowest output this season.

'I think it started off with our rebounding,' said junior forward Ben Struss, who prepped at Cedar Rapids Kennedy. 'We got stops on defense and cleared it with rebounds. We were running and it was our pace. We controlled the game, we controlled the tempo.'

Struss drilled two of his team-high three 3-pointers during a pivotal 22-4 surge that gave the Mustangs their largest lead of the game at 30-9. He finished with 11 points, while his former Kennedy teammate Kyle Lamaak added 10. Struss, Lamaak and guard Chris Ford all collected six rebounds.

'We just played together,' said Ford, who chipped in 11 points. 'From day one at the beginning of this tournament, Coach (Jennings) just preached playing together and team first.'

Mount Mercy senior forward Alex Houston was named tournament MVP after a 15-point, 15-rebound performance in the championship. His 14 second-half points ensured a double-digit lead throughout the final half.

'Just a workhorse,' Jennings said. 'Great hands, just finishing at the basket, playing through contact.'

AT U.S. CELLULAR CENTER

YORK (61):

Price 6-15 5-5 17, Cooksey 5-9 1-2 14, Coleman 1-4 6-8 8, Smith 4-10 0-0 8, Johnson 3-8 0-1 6, Lenear 1-6 4-5 6; Jackson 1-3 0-0 2, Tolliver 0-3 0-0 0, Beene 0-0 0-0 0, Karbhari 0-0 0-0 0, Bates 0-3 0-0 0, Cole 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 21-63 16-21 61.

MOUNT MERCY (74):

Houston 6-12 3-9 15, Ford 3-9 4-4 11, Struss 3-5 2-2 11,

Lamaak 5-11 0-0 10, Wagner 2-9 4-4 8, Brawner 2-3 2-2 8, Bedford, Jr. 2-4 0-0 5, Gogg 2-4 0-0 4, Strong 1-3 0-0 2, Parker 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 26-63 15-21 74.

Halftime – Mount Mercy, 38-25. Three-point goals – York 3-18 (Cooksey 3-5, Smith 0-4, Johnson 0-2, Lenear 0-3, Jackson 0-1, Bates 0-1, Cole 0-2); Mount Mercy 7-16 (Struss 3-4, Brawner 2-3, Bedford, Jr. 1-2, Ford 1-2, Parker 0-2; Wagner 0-3). Fouled out – Johnson. Rebounds – York 36 (Price 10), Mount Mercy 48 (Houston 15). Assists – York 11 (Smith 6), Mount Mercy 13 (Wagner 5). Total fouls –

York 21, Mount Mercy 22.

l Comments: douglas.miles@thegazette.com