March 20, 2009

Kansas City, Mo. - Rocky Mountain College (Mont.) moved into the quarterfinals of the 2009 Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament with a 71-62 victory over Central Methodist University (Mo.) at Municipal Auditorium Friday afternoon.

The Bears shot 48 percent from the field, including six of 13 from the beyond the arc, in the opening half to a take a 32-28 to the break. Chase Sukut recorded nine points, on three 3-pointers, Rocky Mountain. Central Methodist was just as good in the opening half, connecting on 50 percent of its field goal attempts and all three chances from the free throw line.

Rocky Mountain never trailed in the second half and methodically pulled away in the second half, achieving its biggest lead of 70-58 on a free throw by Nate Richardson with 36 seconds to play. The Bears shot only 40 percent from the field in the second half, but were 14 of 19 from the free throw line, a 73.7 percent success rate. Meanwhile, Central Methodist shot 48 percent from the field for the game; however, the Eagles only went to the foul line 10 times, making nine.

Sukut led the Bears with a game-high 23 points to lead four players in double figures. All six of his field goals were from outside the arc. James Bulluck added 14 points while Devin Uskoski recorded a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds.

Central Methodist was paced by Jeff Blauvelt with 18 points, including six of six from the foul line. Brock Edris netted 13 points, all in the first half, and Anthony Johnson totaled 12 markers off the bench. Blauvelt and Mat Sherman led the Eagles with five rebounds each.

Rocky Mountain will play No. 12 Concordia University (Calif.) at 3 p.m. CDT on Saturday in the quarterfinals. Concordia advanced with an 85 7-9 victory over Mountain State University (W. Va.) earlier on Friday. The Bears are currently 25-9 on the season. Central Methodist ends its season with a 28-7 overall record.

GAME NOTES

 
Central Methodist came into the game as the sixth-best three-point shooting team in NAIA Division I but hit just five-of-26 in the game ... Rocky Mountain, which won its first-ever tournament game on Wednesday, improves to 2-5 all-time ... Central Methodist drops to 6-5 all-time at the event, including 1-3 in second-round contests ... Devin Uskoski recorded his NAIA-leading 26th double-double of the season, including his second of the tournament ... Rocky Mountain is the second unseeded team to advance to the quarterfinals, joining Auburn University Montgomery (Ala.) ... 141 of Rocky Mountain's 149 points in the tournament have come from their starters.