BILLINGS, Mont. – The Seattle Pacific University men's basketball team played its regular-season finale against Montana State University Billings on Saturday afternoon. The Falcons closed a deficit in the second half but couldn't come back against the Yellowjackets, falling 73-67.
"We started slow," head coach Keffrey Fazio said. "Give credit to Billings. They were locked in and shot the ball well to begin the game. Our urgency just was not there."
The Falcons were on the wrong end of a Yellowjackets run that closed out the first half. SPU trailed 25-15 before MSUB exploded for a 23-11 run. The Falcons shot 50 percent (11-for-22) from the field in the first half but made one 3-pointer. At the same time, the Yellowjackets couldn't miss. They wrapped up the first half with a 57.6 percent (19-for-33) field goal percentage. The hot shooting gave the Yellowjackets a 46-26 lead at halftime.
"Adversity got the best of us today," Fazio added. "We had trouble making the correct response to those moments. Ultimately that's what did us in."
The Falcons began to chip away at the Yellowjackets' lead with 14 minutes left. Mason Landdeck's jumper sparked a 17-5 run that lasted 5:30. The Falcons went 7-for-11 from the field during that stretch. Landdeck led the group with five points, while Owen Moriarty had four. The run pulled the Falcons within nine points with 8:48 to play.
SPU trailed 64-51 with 7:16 left to play when they'd have another burst of offense. The Falcons went on an 11-0 run over 3:31. Grant Coleman splashed home a pair of 3-pointers while Landdeck added another. The Falcons trailed 64-59 with just under four minutes left in the game.
Jaxon Nap hit a layup with four seconds left to bring the Falcons within three points of the Yellowjackets. MSUB hit foul shots to secure its 73-67 victory.
"Proud of the fight in the second half obviously but you don't want to spend too much time having to come back in games," Fazio said.
Nap led the Falcons with 18 points on 9-for-12 shooting. He was a rebound away from a double-double, finishing with nine. Nap also led the team in assists with five on Saturday. Landdeck scored 13 points with three 3-pointers. He added three rebounds and three assists.
Moriarty scored 12 points against the Yellowjackets. He had a strong game on the glass, pulling down eight rebounds. Jonas La Tour was the final Falcon in double-figures with 11 points. Coleman provided a nice boost off the bench with nine points.
Turnovers hurt the Falcons against the Yellowjackets. SPU turned it over 19 times, and the Yellowjackets turned into 21 points off turnovers.
The Falcons find out their seed in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Tournament after today's conference games. They'll play in the opening round at 12:00 p.m. or 2:15 p.m.
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