Behind a 56 percent shooting night, the Colorado Christian University men’s basketball team exacted revenge for an earlier loss in Chadron, defeating Chadron State College 91-70 at home in Lakewood on Friday evening.
“We struggled to make shots,” said coach Houston Reed. “That led to defensive transition. We led in a lot of ways on the box score. We won turnovers, free throws, offensive rebounds, points in the paint, and points off turnovers. Like I told the guys after the game, ‘if you’re not frustrated right now, you’re not a competitor.’ We just have to make shots.”
The Eagles enjoyed having Michael Johnson back at full strength. The sophomore big man scored 14 points in 20 minutes, shooting 7-of-8 from the field.
As a team, Chadron State hit more than 50 percent from inside the three-point arc, but were only 3-of-20 from long range, bringing their overall shooting percentage down to under 40 percent.
Freshman Walker Andrew and sophomore Jordan Mills each added 10 points.
Defensively, senior Matt Reader had four blocked shots and two steals. He led both teams with six rebounds.
The Cougars’ Isaiah Hanson recorded a game-high 25 points. The fifth-year senior, who was 3-for-6 from three-point range in CCU’s 24-point loss in Chadron, drained 9-of-12 on Friday evening, including 6-of-7 from three.
Colorado Christian went off for eight treys in the second half, to score 51 in the game’s final 20 minutes.
“These guys played hard,” said Reed. “It’s all about taking our frustration and funneling it into the right things. That’s our challenge for tomorrow night. We need to put all of our frustration into the next game and into the right direction.”
Chadron State will be in the Denver area again on Saturday, facing Colorado School of Mines in Golden, at approximately 7 p.m.
Score by half:
Chadron State 32 38 —-70
Colorado Christian 40 51 —-91
Chadron State—Michael Johnson 14, Walker Andrew 10, Jordan Mills 10, Jaisean Jackson 9, Dru Kuxhausen 9, Eric Jamerman 8, Jeremy Ruffin 6, Matt Reader 2, Leigh Saffin 2. Totals: 25-63 (3-20) 17-20 70 points, 34 rebounds, 14 turnovers.
Colorado Christian—Isaiah Hanson 25, Stefan Hackenthal 19, Jeremiah Hanson 17, Christian Hyatt 12, Marcus Fager 8, Justin Engesser 6, Preston Hardy 2, Chris Hildenbrand 2. Totals: 36-64 (12-24) 7-10 91 points, 35 rebounds, 15 turnovers.