Men’s basketball humbled in GPAC match-up

The Northwestern men’s basketball team fell to Briar Cliff Wednesday evening 82-60. Briar Cliff avenged their 30-point loss at the hands of the Raiders earlier this season, dominating the Raiders in Sioux City.
Coming into the game, NW was ranked 12th in the nation and second in the GPAC, while Briar Cliff was 14th in the nation and third in the GPAC.
“Going into the game our mentality was good,” said senior guard Walker Seim. “We were on a winning streak and playing good basketball. Going on the road in the GPAC is never easy, but we knew that going in.”
The Raiders struggled to score all night, managing just 25 points in the first half. BC swarmed NW in the post, preventing easy baskets from junior post players Stu Goslinga and Daniel Van Kalsbeek.
When the Raiders got easy shots, nothing seemed to fall. NW shot 31 percent from the field and 27 percent from behind the three point line.
As a team, the Raiders managed only nine assists to 11 turnovers.
“We were out of sorts on offense,” Seim said. “But I would have to say that their size and length was able to bother us around the basket.”
Briar Cliff was scorching from the three point line, shooting 43 percent from beyond the arc. When the Raiders starters left the game, the bench made the final score look more respectable. Senior Kurt Korver dropped 10 points and junior Jacey Hoegh put in eight of his own.
But NW is making a point not to let the loss affect them mentally as the regular season has less than a month left.
“I feel like there are positives in any situation,” Seim said. “Some are harder to find than others, but the biggest thing we need to realize is that the season is not over. We still have seven GPAC games left and a good shot at winning the conference. As long as we take care of ourselves, we do not need to worry about what other teams do. We need to realize that last night is over and move on.”
On Jan. 18, NW beat Morningside at the Bultman Center 96-86. The Raiders took care of the ball, giving it up only 13 times, and were efficient from the field, shooting 49 percent.
Junior Ben Miller scored 23 points on 8-13 shooting, and junior Zack Leeper was 6-13 from the field, adding 14 points.
With the Mustangs trying to neturalize Goslinga after he exploded for 33 points in their first meeting, Van Kalsbeek picked up the scoring in the paint, scoring 13 points. Seim also added 13 points off the bench.
NW’s next game is this Saturday against Hastings. Tip-off is at 4 p.m.
“Hastings is another quality team so we need to prepare for them as if we were playing the number one team in the nation,” Seim said.