Oilers Come Up Short Against Warriors
The University of Findlay men's basketball team fell 76-73 to Wayne State University on Saturday, January 14 in Detroit, Michigan. The loss gives the Oilers a 12-4 record on the season with a 6-3 mark in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC).
The Oilers had a miserable opening half as they went scoreless for the first 7:39 of the game and eventually found themselves down 31-19 at the break.
In the first half, the Oilers shot only 5-of-20 (25%) from the field and turned the ball over nine times.
In the second half, the Oilers battled back to cut the lead to three at 68-65 on a couple of free throws by sophomore forward Greg Kahlig with 21 seconds remaining. After a pair of free throws by the Warriors, sophomore guard Sean Samsel drained a three pointer to make the score 70-68 with only 12.5 seconds left.
Needing to stop the clock, the Oilers sent the Warriors back to the line where they connected on two more free throws. Samsel then raced the ball down the floor and scored on a lay-up.
Down 72-70 with five seconds left, Ike Udanoh made his first free throw and then missed his second, but the Oilers were unable to control the ball as they lost it out of bounds. The Warriors then converted a traditional three point play to make the score 76-70 before Samsel banked in a three pointer at the buzzer for the final margin.
Findlay shot 45.1 percent (23-of-51) from the field while the Warriors connected on 44.7 percent (21-of-47) of their shots.
The Warriors held a 37-29 advantage in the rebound department and also made 30-of-40 (75%) attempts from the free throw line.
Senior guard Kyle Caiola led the team with a season-high 21 points while Samsel recorded a career-high 15 in the loss.
Kahlig also reached double figures with 12 points.
Udanoh led the Warriors with 25 points and 12 rebounds.
The Oilers will be back at home next Thursday, January 19 when they host # 18 Hillsdale College at 8 pm in Croy Gymnasium.