March 15, 2008

Box Score

ALLENDALE, Mich. - Junior Brandon Dagans scored a game-high 20 points, and senior Stephan Bolt posted a double-double of 12 points and a game-high 10 rebounds, but the Flyers fell to a hot-shooting Findlay squad 64-57, in a Great Lakes Regional quarterfinal Saturday afternoon on the campus of Grand Valley State University.

Lewis, a seventh seed, led by four points at halftime after coming back from an early 11-3 hole, but the Oilers shot 68.4 percent from the floor in the second, hitting 8-of-12 from 3-point range, and outscored the Flyers 43-32.

Despite hitting just 2-of-11 from 3-point range in the first half, the Oilers didn't shy away from the perimeter in the second. Findlay hit treys on three of its first four baskets of the second half, quickly erasing the Flyers' halftime lead.

A quick feed inside to sophomore Marcus Parker for a dunk at 14:31, put the Oilers up by one. Findlay never trailed again. The crisp outside shooting continued, and with 8:23 to play they led by double-digits for the first time. The Oilers took 12 of their 19 second-half shots from beyond the arc.

Freshman Nathan Hyde and junior Tyler Evans paced the Oilers from downtown. Hyde made all three of the treys he took in the second half, while Evans made 3-of-5. The duo finished with 13 and nine points, respectively.

The Oilers' defense did the rest, forcing 20 Lewis turnovers on 12 steals for the game.

In the first half, it was Dagans who helped pull the Flyers out of an early 11-3 hole. He nailed Lewis' first trey of the game to cut it to five, and then lay-ups by freshman Dennis Thomas, Jr. and senior Matthew Marino following two Findlay misses made it an 11-10 ballgame.

Bolt came up with a steal on Findlay's next possession, and Dagans drilled a jumper to give Lewis its first lead of the game at 12-11.

Findlay closed the gap with just over three minutes to play, but Lewis answered again with a dunk by Bolt and a lay-up and trey by Dagans to build a seven-point cushion.

The Flyers seemed destined to carry a seven-point lead into halftime, but Findlay added three at the buzzer when Parker banked one in from just inside half court. Parker led the Oilers with 15 points.

Dagans finished 8-of-19 from the floor, including 4-of-9 from 3-point range. Bolt was 4-of-7 from the field and 4-of-6 at the line. Senior Dustin Warfield added six points, and Marino had four.

Findlay didn't send Dagans to the line once the entire game, and limited Lewis to just 6-of-11 from the stripe. The Flyers out-rebounded the Oilers 38-27.

The Flyers finished the season 20-11, becoming just the 14th team in school history to reach 20 wins.