The Fighting Scots men’s basketball team wrapped up their season with an 85-56 loss to the Grinnell Pioneers in the Midwest Conference Tournament final Saturday afternoon. Plagued by cold shooting and 17 turnovers, Monmouth went 0 for 7 on three-point shots in the first half and did not hit a shot from beyond the arc until the 29th minute of play.
With the win, the Pioneers earned their second straight conference tournament title, plus an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III tournament.
Zay Brown drew first blood for the Scots, draining a free throw 16 seconds into the game to give Monmouth an early 1-0 lead. Both teams traded scores for the first ten minutes, but the Pioneers eventually found their shooting and defensive touches and took the lead for good. Throughout the rest of the first half, the Pioneers progressively extended their lead over Monmouth, and the Scots entered the locker room trailing 40-23.
In the second half, the Pioneers picked up right where they left off, gradually building their lead larger as the half went on. With under nine minutes to play, Grinnell led Monmouth by 26 points: 69-43. In those last nine minutes, the Pioneers held the line, locking down on defense and creating many offensive scoring chances to hold the Scots at bay and punch their ticket to their second consecutive NCAA tournament.
The men finish the season with an overall record of 20-7 with a 14-2 record in league play and a second-place finish in the conference. The Scots bid farewell to six seniors: Brock Card, Jason Huber, Kyle Taylor, Kamran Banks, Turner Plumer, and Max Maring.
Grinnell will face John Caroll University in the first round of the NCAA Division III men’s basketball tournament on Friday at Illinois Wesleyan University.