Complete Box Score

FORT WORTH, Texas - Aaron Whaley, honored before tip-off as one of three seniors on this year‘s squad, hit back-to-back clutch three-pointers late in the game to help cut a ten point deficit to two, but the Rams couldn’t get any closer. Bacone was perfect in ten attempts from the free throw line down the stretch, and held off the Wesleyan charge, winning 72-64 on the final night of regular season action.

Bacone scored the opening bucket, but the Rams controlled the opening minutes of Monday night’s game. Down 2-0 after Tamas Komodi’s early lay-up, Wesleyan poured in the next eight points to take a six-point lead after three minutes of play. Whaley got the Rams on the board with a three-pointer, then finished the run with a driving lay-up, scoring five of those points.

Bacone came back with five straight points to close the gap to one, and from there the teams traded points until the 14-minute mark, when the Warriors began an 8-0 run that would put them in front 17-12. James Whitfield, another senior, buried a three-pointer with just under 12 minutes left to break up Bacone’s momentum, but the Warriors scored nine of the next 11 points to grab a 26-17 lead, and put the Rams on the defensive for the rest of the night. The lead stayed right around nine for nearly the rest of the half, until Brad Schilder’s free throws cut the halftime deficit to 32-25

Both teams began the second frame by hitting three-pointers, Whitfield connecting for Wesleyan and Jahari Mincey for Bacone. Kenny Johnson then completed a three-point play for the Rams to cut the lead to four, but Mike Griffin retaliated for the Warriors, hitting one of his three three-pointers on the night to restore a seven-point advantage for Bacone at 31-38. It seemed no matter what the Rams did, Bacone had an answer, holding on to their big lead, and even adding to it as the half rolled on. Komodi’s three-point play, followed by another three-pointer from Mincey put the Warriors up by 12 with 12:45 to play, and they held that double-digit lead for several minutes.

With the score 51-41, the Rams finally edged closer when Joey Gladney’s lay-up was followed by a three-point play from Whaley and another three-pointer from Whitfield. The 8-0 Wesleyan run brought the Rams to within four at 51-47 with 9:30 left in the game. The Warriors, though, came back with a run of their own, outscoring the Rams 9-3 over the next five minutes to build their lead back up to ten.

Whaley hit a pair of free throws at the 3:31 mark to cut the lead to eight, then after a Bacone bucket, connected on a pair of three-pointers just 25 seconds apart to bring the Rams to within four points at 62-58. Whaley missed a third attempt 17 seconds later, but Gladney tipped the loose ball home to bring the Rams to within two points with 1:15 remaining. That was as close as they would get, though.

Mike Olden hit a pair of free throws for Bacone that began a streak of ten consecutive knocked down by the Warriors in the game’s final minute, and the Rams could only muster two Kenny Johnson buckets over that time, losing their final regular season game 72-64.

Griffin led Bacone with 7 points on five of 12 shooting, including three of five from beyond the arc. Komodi finished with 16 points, and Rodrick Taylor recorded a double-double with ten points and ten rebounds. The Warriors shot 40 percent from the floor in the game, but were 50 percent from three-point distance. They also out-rebounded the Rams 43-28.

In the final regular season game of his three-year career at Wesleyan, Aaron Whaley led the team with 16 points, including three three-pointers. He also recorded a game-high four steals. The two other seniors honored before the game, James Whitfield and Kenny Johnson, were the only other Rams to score in double figures on senior night, posting 11 points each. Schilder scored nine with six rebounds, Gladney scored eight with five boards, and David Johnson scored five with six rebounds and four blocks. Brandon Hobbs was the only other Ram to get on the board, scoring four points.

With the loss, the Rams finish the regular season with a record of 21-11, 13-7 in Red River Conference play.

Tonight’s loss will likely drop the Rams into the fourth seed in the upcoming Red River Conference tournament. They still host a first-round play-off game - likely against Langston University - but will now probably have to face #1 Houston Baptist in the semi-finals rather than the finals. That distinction is important because the Red River Conference has two automatic bids to the NAIA national tournament later this month, and by virtue of winning the regular season title, HBU has already secured one of those spots. The other will go to the team which wins the conference tournament. If the Huskies win, then the team they beat in the finals will advance. If the Rams do indeed have to face HBU in the semi-final round, they will have to beat the Huskies, then win the final game to receive a bid to the national tournament.

The Rams will host a first-round playoff game on Saturday, March 8 at 7:30 PM. Continue to visit The Rams Online for more information about the game.