Recap: #4 Men's Basketball Crowned 2025 MCCC Tournament Champions
The Thunder men's basketball team entered the Midwest Christian College Conference Tournament with a shared regular season title and would be the one seed for the tournament. The Thunder would earn a bye to Friday and host the four seed Faith Baptist Bible College Eagles. The Thunder would jump out to a 15-0 lead just over three minutes into the game and would bolster their lead to as much as 20 in the first half. The Eagles would not go away as they would cut the lead to three with 3:13 left in the first, but a 10-2 run by the Thunder would make the lead 11 going into halftime. The Thunder would control the second half and lead by double figures for all but seconds in the second half and the Thunder would closeout the Eagles 97-77.
The Thunder would shoot 51.5% from the field, 38.9% from the three-point line, and 58.8% from the free throw line. They would also out-rebound the Eagles 44-24 and force 18 turnovers. 11 Thunder players would score, led by junior, Xavier Lucas who had 20 points on 8-13 shooting from the field, to go along with nine rebounds and three steals. Senior, Micah Lovett would have an efficient night going 6-7 from the field scoring 16 points, while junior, Jaxon Hurla would have 13 points and redshirt sophomore, Jordan Carter would chip in with 11. Nine Thunder players would also have three or more rebounds on the night.
The Thunder then advanced to the championship game on Saturday where they would host the Ozark Christian College Ambassadors, who shared the regular season title with the Thunder. It would be a slow start for the Thunder as they would be down 8-1 to start the game. The Thunder would take their first lead with 9:07 left in the first half and would only lose the lead one more time the rest of the game. The Thunder would take their largest lead of the game with 13:13 left in the game, a 64-45 advantage. The Ambassadors would not go away quietly as they would cut the lead to single digits with 5:17 remaining. Clutch free throws down the stretch would secure the win for the Thunder crowning them the 2025 MCCC Tournament Champions! The Thunder are now 21-10 on the season.
The Thunder would shoot 47.1% from the field, 37.5% from the three-point line, and 83.9% from the free throw line. All the Thunder players that entered the game scored at least five points led by Lovett who had 22 points, going 10-11 from the free throw line, and also having three assists and three steals. Sophomore, Davis Rokey would have a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Lucas and Hurla would have 12 and 10 points, respectively, while Fred Criqui would score nine points and grab four rebounds.
The Thunder will play again on Tuesday, February 25th at the NCCAA Central Region Tournament. They will be the two seed will play the seven seed Barclay College Bears at 5:00 PM in Moberly, Missouri.
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