Broncos Eliminate Chargers; Thomas Sets Single Season Scoring Record
Hastings, NE – The Hastings College men’s basketball team took on a battle-hardened Briar Cliff team and was able to pull away late to defeat the Chargers 76-61 on Wednesday night inside Lynn Farrell Arena in the quarterfinals of the Great Plains Athletic Tournament.
| Final | 1 | 2 | T |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
26 | 35 | 61 |
|
|
39 | 37 | 76 |
Team Stats
Briar Cliff (IA)
| Game Statistics | Briar Cliff (IA) | Hastings |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | (20-52) | (25-44) |
| Field Goal % | 38.5% | 56.8% |
| Rebounds | 22 | 37 |
| Assists | 11 | 13 |
| Turnovers | 10 | 15 |
| Pts off Turnovers | 22 | 10 |
| 2nd Chance Pts | 1 | 6 |
| Pts in the Paint | 24 | 28 |
| Fastbreak Pts | 0 | 0 |
| Bench Pts | 12 | 13 |
Hastings, NE – The Hastings College men's basketball team took on a battle-hardened Briar Cliff team and was able to pull away late to defeat the Chargers 76-61 on Wednesday night inside Lynn Farrell Arena in the quarterfinals of the Great Plains Athletic Tournament.
The student section showed out and made things difficult for the Chargers throughout the contest and even switched ends of the floor at halftime to make it even tougher for the visitor.
The Broncos were able to build an early double-digit lead over BCU in the first half and were able to lead by 13 going into halftime.
Briar Cliff wasn't going to let this one get away like that last one did and with a Jamison Helmers 3-pointer, HC now led 43-39 with 15:21 to go in the game.
The Broncos were looking to answer the run and did so as Reggie Thomas buried a three followed by a tough and one for Anthony Thomas as the lead was back to 10 at 49-39 with 14:09 to play.
But Hastings knew another run was probable and following a Helmers and one, Hastings now led 55-50 with 9:22 to go as it seemed as though this one may come down to the wire.
The Broncos had other plans as Danilo Matovic kicked the ball out to a wide-open Quinn Johnson as he buried the three from the wing to make it 58-50. After a BCU free throw, Thomas would get hacked on a jumper as the ball flew high into the air only to find all nylon as he would go on to finish of the old fashioned three point play as the Broncos were back up 61-51 with 7:00 to go.
Hastings was able to keep its double digit lead the rest of the way and when Thomas knocked down a floater with just under 2:00 to go, that bucket broke the all-time single season scoring record in school history of 701 points set by Benny Crawford during the 1963-64 season. The Broncos would go on to win 76-61 and advance to the GPAC semifinals for the first time since 2020.
The defense continued to show why its worthy of a continued tournament run when Tyrique McMurrin chased down the layup attempt by Blake Sindelar and blocked it off the glass which set up a Thomas layup to make it 70-57 with 2:00 to go.
Thomas finished the night with his ninth career double-double with a game high 33 points as he was 10-for-15 from the floor, 4-of-6 from downtown and a perfect 9-for-9 from the line. He also pulled down 11 rebounds. Matovic finished with 12 points as he was 5-of-6 from the floor. Thompson added eight points while McMurrin added six points and pulled down nine boards. Johnson also finished with six off the bench.
The Broncos shot 56 percent (25-for-44) from the field while holding the Chargers to 38.5 percent (20-for-52). The Broncos connected on 10-of-18 3-pointers while BCU was 7-of-23.
The rebounding edge heavily favored the Broncos 37-to-22 as the Broncos would lead this one from start to finish.
The Broncos improve to 21-8 on the year and will be back in action Saturday Mar. 2 as Concordia comes to town for the GPAC semifinal with tipoff set for 3:00 pm inside Lynn Farrell Arena.
GPAC Men's Basketball Quarterfinals – Wednesday, February 28
#1 Northwestern def. #8 Dakota Wesleyan 78-65
#4 Morningside def. #5 Jamestown 89-72
#3 Concordia def. #6 Dordt 87-83
#2 Hastings def. #7 Briar Cliff 76-61
GPAC Men's Basketball Semifinals – Saturday, March 2
#1 Northwestern vs. #4 Morningside, 3:00 pm, Orange City, IA
#2 Hastings vs. #3 Concordia, 3:00 pm, Hastings, NE
GPAC Men's Basketball Championship Tuesday, March 5
Semifinal winners at highest remaining seed, Time TBA
