[Men's Basketball] Mustangs surprise Saints, advance to semifinals

CLINTON, Iowa -- Sixth-seeded Mount Mercy did two things really well on Wednesday night and that led to a 77-74 victory over third-seeded Ashford in the quarterfinals of the 2012 Midwest Collegiate Conference Men's Basketball Tournament at Kehl Arena.

The Mustangs shot 56.9 percent from the floor, including 62.5 percent in the second half, and committed only 11 turnovers to avenge a pair of losses to the Saints during the regular season. Ashford (20-11) earned a lopsided, 70-50, victory over Mount Mercy on Jan. 4 in Cedar Rapids, then edged the Mustangs (19-11), 72-70, on Feb. 1 in Clinton.

On Wednesday, Mount Mercy opened up a 36-27 halftime advantage, then led by as many as 14 at 50-36 with 14:45 to go in the game. Ashford went on a 14-0 run over the next four minutes and the game was tied at 50-50 with just over 10 minutes remaining. But the Mustangs didn't fold, regaining the the lead for good on their next possession on a basket by junior forward Alex Coleman.

Vesteinn Sveinsson made it a one-possession game, 74-71, with two free throws with 29 seconds on the clock. Senior forward Sam Kenyi knocked down 1-of-2 foul shots next time down the floor. Then, after a missed 3-point attempt by Devn Ehrich, Kenyi went back to the line and hit both shots to put Mount Mercy up, 77-71, with 18 seconds left.

Matthias Burns hit a long 3-pointer to cut that deficit in half with 11 seconds to go, and after a pair of missed free throws by the Mustangs, the Saints had nine seconds to try and force overtime. But it wasn't meant to be as Jonathan Wyatt's trey was off the mark at the buzzer and Mount Mercy escaped with the win. It snapped a six-game losing streak in the MCC Tournament for the Mustangs, who hadn't won a quarterfinal since a road win at Viterbo (Wis.) in February 2005.

Kenyi and junior forward Chad Underwood scored 17 points apiece to lead four Mustangs in double figures. Junior forward Troy Peter added 13 points, senior guard David Campbell 12. Underwood also had four rebounds and junior guard Sid Beck dished out six assists.

Jason Landry topped the Saints with 18 points. Wyatt scored 14 points, Burns finished with 13 and Peter Tanzillo scored 10. Burns also tallied six rebounds and five assists, Javier Valdez grabbed six boards and collected a pair of steals.

It was a night of upsets in the MCC Tournament, which saw three of the four lower seeds advance. Seventh-seeded Grand View defeated second-seeded William Penn, 93-88, in Oskaloosa and will visit Hennessey Recreation Center on Friday to face Mount Mercy at 7:00 p.m. Fifth-seeded Waldorf won, 76-70, at fourth-seeded Clarke and will take on top-seeded St. Ambrose, an 86-79 winner over eighth-seeded Iowa Wesleyan, on Friday at 7:00 p.m. in Davenport. The highest remaining seed will host the MCC championship game on Sunday at 6:00 p.m.