CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (Duhawks.com) – The Loras College Men's basketball team fell to 0-2 in Iowa Conference play Saturday afternoon on the road at Coe College. Eby Fieldhouse played host to a very physical and emotionally intense game between the Duhawks and the Kohawks, and in the end, the Duhawks came up short 68-60. Junior
Justin VanWambeke led the way for the Duhawks with 18 points and four rebounds.
The Duhawks got on the scoreboard first with a powerful finish inside from junior
Justin Schneider. The Kohawks countered with three post touch-baskets of their own. It was evident early that physicality would consume this game.
The tide quickly turned to an outside game as the two teams began trading 3-point baskets for multiple possessions. Senior
Luke Barry connected from long range on back-to-back possessions, giving the Duhawks an 18-17 lead.
After 20 minutes, Loras held a slim 33-32 lead. s ahead by one, 33-32 at the midway point of the game.
The score was tied at 37 with 15:39 remaining when Coe's Matt Daoust scored three consecutive baskets, including a 3-pointer. A pair of Kohawks followed suit and hit two more from beyond the arc, giving Coe a 50-41 lead with 12:16 to play.
The hometown fans shook the gym as the Duhawks called timeout in an attempt to kill the momentum. VanWambeke helped bring Loras closer, scoring seven of the team's final 12 points over the final 10 minutes of the game.
Opting to foul and hope for Coe misses, the Duhawks took their chances and sent Kohawks to the line within the final minute. However, Coe finished 6-for-6 from the charity stripe down the stretch and sealed the victory 68-60.
Game ChangerThe Kohawks created separation from the Duhawks five minutes into the second half as three different Coe players connected from deep, pushing their lead to nine
Key StatThe Kohawks utilized offensive rebounds outscoring the Duhawks 11-2 on second chance points
Notables- The Duhawks were held to just 38 percent shooting on the night, going 20-of-52 on the night … This is their second lowest shooting percentage on the year
- Loras turned the ball over only eight times throughout the game, their best performance in that category on the season
- Coe outrebounded the Duhawks 37-29 on the night … It's the seventh time on the season they have been outrebounded although they hold a .3 advantage in rebounding margin on the year
Quotable
Bobby Harmening, senior guard"We have all the right talent, all the right preparation, and all the right pieces of what a championship level team is made of. It's just a matter of putting it all together out there. We are very, very close."
Up NextThe Duhawks (5-8, 0-2) return home to the Athletic Wellness Center and will host the Simpson College Storm (6-7, 1-1). The Storm are coming off of a 65-62 over Buena Vista University on Saturday. Last season the Duhawks held the advantage 2-0 on the season series over the Storm. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. on Wednesday.
