Lamar Holds Off Upset-Minded Northwestern State, 76-69

Lamar Holds Off Upset-Minded Northwestern State, 76-69

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By Brandon C. Williams
Southland.org

KATY, Texas -- With his team's season hanging in the balance, Lamar senior guard Mike James knew one thing: he wanted the ball in his hands. 

Two clutch shots later, Cardinals coach Pat Knight had no qualms about James' desire.

James' first jumper tied the score with 2:19 left, and his second with 1:30 remaining gave Lamar the lead for good in a wild 76-69 slugfest over Northwestern State in Wednesday's quarterfinal, putting the fourth-seeded Cardinals (21-11) into a Thursday evening tilt with Stephen F. Austin.

"We needed buckets," said James, who scored a team-high 21 points. "I knew if I got the opportunity to, I was going to take them. I felt like if I could get into the right spot and get enough room, I could make them."

The baskets wrote the final chapter to what had been a physical game filled with momentum swings that left Merrell Center charged with electricity as both schools fed off the emotion of their fan bases.

Erasing a 13-point deficit, Northwestern State (16-16) used a 17-1 second half run to hold a 65-61 lead with 3:10 left, but managed just one field goal down the stretch.

"The key to that was that we got the ball into William's (Mosley) hands," said Northwestern State coach Mike McConathy of his senior center, who scored 22 points and grabbed nine rebounds. We were getting stops at the other end, (but) we got tired...if you've got the numbers to keep things going, that makes a difference."

The Cardinals very nearly saw their record of winning when leading after halftime come to screeching halt, but Knight knew his team's knack for overcoming their struggles would shine through in the end.

"We have a problem sustaining leads," said Knight. "For some reason, we get nervous and I think complacent and let teams back into the game, but instead of quitting, these guys come back. We should just do this from the start, and it wouldn't be as dramatic."

Lamar's ability to get to the line helped lift to victory, as the Cardinals knocked down 17 of their 23 attempts from the charity stripe, including 5 of 7 in the final 62 seconds. The Cards also received a huge boost from forward Stan Brown, who had 10 of the team's 46 rebounds and delivered two critical blocked shots in the closing minutes.

Mosley put the Demons on his back despite spending much of the second half with four fouls and dealing with the tragic loss of his two infant sons in a Houston hospital on Saturday night. It was his grace under tremendous personal pressure that helped Northwestern State nearly extend its season by another 40 minutes.

"Warrior, man," said Demons guard Shamir Davis (12 points) of Mosley. 

"He's had a lot of bumps in the road this week," said McConathy, "but he never changes. He's all business. He knows people care about him. He's the kind of kid that I'd want to be my son."


Postgame Quotes

Lamar head coach Pat Knight

On giving up a big second half lead...

"We have a problem with sustaining a lead. We had a great first half, but for some reason we get loose and complacent and let them back in the game, but these guys never gave up. "

On the group of seniors...
"It is not just from a stat standpoint, but from an energy standpoint, these guys have been focusing."

On hitting free throws down the stretch...
"It's always huge when we can hit free throws. It keeps you in charge and it keeps the momentum going. If you miss the free throws, it just gives the opposing team momentum. Our guys did a great job hitting free throws."

 
Lamar senior guard Anthony Miles

On the last three minutes of the game...

"We have people on our team that can make plays. All we wanted to do was to be in the game towards the end, and we were. I never sensed anyone being rattle, and we have a lot of seniors on this team and we just kept making plays."

 
Lamar senior guard Mike James

On the last three minutes of the game...

"We were in a close game and Northwestern State got up a couple of points in the last five minutes of the game, so we just needed to get stops. I felt like if we got stop, then we have enough people to score, and we were going to come back. We were just focusing on getting stops and taking shots that we needed."

 
 
Northwestern State head coach Mike McConathy

Opening statement...

"I am really proud of my team. They came back under very adverse conditions from being down by 13 points and coming back down there stretch. Unfortunately, we were just unable to make some shots when we needed to and get some stops. I though t Coach Knight and Lamar did an excellent job, especially the last three minutes of the game, getting to the goal and getting some easy buckets. Our kids competed very hard, and our hats go off to Lamar for hanging in there. "

On the last three minutes of the game...
"I just think the last three minutes, Lamar was able to make shots, and we were attacking the glass but weren't able to get to the free throw line."

 
Northwestern State senior center William Mosley

On his play against Lamar...

"I was just feeling it the whole game. I came out ready to play, and I knew my teammates came out ready to play. They told me they were going to feed it to me, and I just wanted to finish it because I wanted to win. It was a tough loss but it was a hard-fought game."