By Nick Van Heest
The Taylor men's basketball team (5-4, 2-1) dropped a heartbreaker last Saturday at Bethel, losing 69-68 after having led most of the second half. "We controlled the entire second half, we just didn't capitalize on our opportunities," said Head Coach Paul Patterson. Bethel (9-2, 3-0) held a 34-31 advantage going into the break after a back-and-forth first half, which saw the teams tie five different times. The Trojans opened the second half strong, and a three-pointer by senior guard Tommy Peller with 16:07 left gave the Trojans a 40-39 lead that was not relinquished until the final minute. The Trojans clung to a single-digit advantage throughout much of the second period, but the Pilots hit two free throws with 1:07 remaining to tie the game 67-67. Senior guard Casey Coons responded quickly by converting one of two from the charity stripe. This gave the Trojans a one-point lead with under a minute left. On their final possession of the game, the Pilots missed a 3-pointer, but grabbed the rebound and scored in the paint to go up 69-68 with just eight seconds left. With the clock winding down, Peller drove down the lane but lost control and couldn't get a shot off as the final buzzer sounded. "We missed some good looks and they made some big plays down the stretch," Coons said. "We struggled a bit with taking the best possible shot we could get on offense," sophomore center Ian Dutcher added. Peller paced the Trojans by scoring a career-high 26 points on 9-17 shooting, including 4-8 from 3-point land. Senior forward Nate Kasper contributed 13, while Coons chipped in 12. Sophomore forward Tyler Waite led Taylor with eight rebounds, while Coons, Waite and sophomore forward Darayl Jordan led Taylor with three assists each. The Trojans shot .429 from the field, compared to .491 for the Pilots. Despite the loss, Patterson has high hopes for this year's squad. "There's no question our team is better (than last season)," Patterson said. "We just have to play well under pressure. The genius is in the details, so we've just got to pull it all together and be more consistent." The players echoed Patterson's thoughts. "We need to continue to trust in each other, execute our stuff, and get stops down the stretch," Peller said. Dutcher focused on some of the specifics the team must execute to be successful. "We need to be able to rebound strong, take smart shots and have a lock-down defense when the game is on the line," Dutcher said. Tonight kicks off the 29th Annual Ivanhoe's Classic tournament, also known as the "Silent Night" game. Patterson believes the biggest challenge of Silent Night is the game itself. "It's a bizarre environment," he said. "Once we get to 10, the game settles down and becomes more normal, but that 10 points is a challenge. Everyone hears everything you say, so for me as a coach, I don't want to embarrass a player in front of everyone." Although much of the focus is on the uniqueness of the game, the Trojans are not taking their opponent lightly. "We don't have a lot of information about Akron-Wayne, but they're college basketball players, so we have to be ready to play," Patterson said. Dutcher's only problem with "Silent Night" is the difference between it and the rest of the Trojan home games. "We just wish more students would come to other games and not just Silent Night, because playing with the support of the student body behind us really helps get us going," he said. Tonight's game is at 6 p.m. in Odle Arena.
