News Release

JACKSONVILLE, Ill. — MacMurray College would have liked to finish the season on upbeat however they lost 4 in a row with their 98-85 loss to Blackburn last night. The injury to Boyer and Garrett were critical as these are 2 good defensive players and Garrett is a solid 3-point shooter. Many of the late losses came on the defensive end of the floor and lack of rebounding, so these players were missed. It was a season with a new head coach and a new system, so there was a little inconsistency game to game. There were some nice wins on the year and too many losses in games that could have easily been posted on the win side of the column. This is a team with no seniors however, so one would hope they will be stronger next year with a season of experience under their belt. The run and shoot offense is not for everyone, so it will be interesting to see how many of the students return and how many feel they are better suited for a traditional game of basketball. Obviously any new recruits will come to the program with open eyes and knowing what to expect. As for the game, the Highlanders only had 2 players with double figures, Robinson (11), Cunningham (10) and looked to be a step behind throughout the entire game. They just didn't match the intensisty of the Beavers and had 2 technicals in the game due to the frustration. Blackburn, on the other hand, had 4 players (Barnett 25, Corey Waters 19, Essington 16, Stevens 16), in double figures, shot 50% from the field 33% from long range and 77% from the free throw line. They ended up 2nd in the conference and will play the #3 team in the first round of the SLIAC tournament. As for MacMurray, they end the season with a 9-16, 5-9 record and will start working on next season. This was a club that had only won 5 games last year and did a little better than most people had predicted for this year.