(Peru, Neb.) – It was a game that saw eight ties and three lead changes with the Peru State men holding on for a 68-67 win as a Baker shot at the buzzer missed its mark.

With the win, the Bobcats improved to 8-10 overall and 3-5 in the Heart of America Athletic Conference (HAAC). The loss drops the Wildcats to 8-11 on the season and 2-6 in the HAAC.

Game Action

At the 18:33 mark in the first half, Baker hit a bucket to take its one and only lead of the first half.

Peru State quickly came back to tie the game and take the lead as Nate Bohy (Mesa, Ariz.) completed an old-fashioned three-point play with 18:17 left in the first stanza. A two-pointer by Taylor Christensen (Phoenix) was followed by a trey by Brett Pierce (St. Joseph, Mo.). The 10-0 Peru State run was capped off by a bucket by Jesse Jones (Edmond, Okla.) on an assist from Bohy. At the 15:51 mark, Peru State led 10-2.
The Bobcats led by as many as 12 at 19-7 in the first half at the 9:33 mark. With 6:21 left in the first 20 minutes, Peru State still maintained a ten-point advantage at 25-15 before the Wildcats closed the gap at halftime. Baker finished the rest of the half on a 14 to 8 run, getting within four at 33-29, at the break.

During the second half, Peru State was not able to get back to a double-digit lead at any point, but did lead by seven at 65-58 with 3:21 left in the game. However, the Wildcats were not done as they fought back to tie the game at 67-67 with 28 seconds left on the clock.

The Bobcats were playing for the last shot when Bohy was fouled with 2.5 seconds remaining. Bohy hit the first of two to make it 68-67. His second shot rimmed off with Baker grabbing the rebound and immediately calling a timeout. After an official's review to reset the clock to 2.3 from 1.8, the Wildcats got the ball down the court and put up a shot that was off, preserving the Bobcats' win.

Team Statistics

Both teams shot the ball well with Baker actually shooting better from all categories than the Bobcats. The Wildcats hit 22 of 43 field goals for 51.2%. This included hitting 7 of 10 three-point attempts for 70%. From the free throw line, Baker was 84.2%.

Peru State was 25 of 50 from field goal range for 50% while making 4 of 11 treys for 36.4%. The Bobcats were 14 of 20 from the charity stripe for 70%.

The Bobcats out-rebounded Baker 26 to 21, but committed 12 turnovers, compared to 10 for the Wildcats. Peru State was credited for two blocked shots in the game.

Individual Statistics

Four Bobcats finished in double figures and were led by Christensen who had a game-high 19 points on 7 of 10 shooting from the floor. Bohy and Kody Kirkpatrick (Loami, Ill.) each added 14 points while Jones contributed 12 points.