MCPHERSON, Kan. – Big players make big plays in big moments, or so goes the old adage in sports. On Thursday night, Andre Horne filled the role of the player in that axiom.
Making his return to the lineup for the first time since February 17, Horne led the Evangels with 17 points, but none were bigger than the last five he scored including a pair of free throws with just two seconds remaining in the game as MACU (19-12) came from behind to defeat Central Christian College (15-15) 72-71.
Horne scored the first five points of the night for MACU, giving MACU a brief 5-4 lead early in the first half. Central Christian came back to reclaim the advantage just 11 seconds later, and the Tigers led for much of the remainder of the first half. Daniel William made a pair of free throws at the 10:43 mark of the first half, and just over a minute later, Calon Woodson made a free throw to knot the score at 15. The Evangels, though, were unable to take the lead, and Central Christian answered with a 12-0 run to take a 27-15 lead. MACU was unable to close any closer than eight points for the remainder of the half, and at the intermission CCC led 43-31.
MACU tried to chip away at the margin early in the second half, but each time the Evangels began to make a dent in the deficit, the Tigers had an answer. Javan Perry scored with 17:33 to play to pull MACU to within seven at 45-38, but CCC quickly stretched their lead back out to 13. An 8-0 MACU run helped the Evangels cut the margin down to five at the 13:09 mark, again on a bucker from Perry, but in less than a minute, the Tigers regained a 10-point advantage. At the 8:55 mark, William made a free throw to pull MACU to within three at 57-54, but again the Tigers responded with six straight points to push the lead back to nine.
As the time wound down in the second half, MACU continued to battle fiercely to cut the deficit. Horne buried a 3-pointer with 4:39 to play to pull the Evangels to within four at 65-61. Justin Bogle cashed in a fast break opportunity with 2:35 to go to trim the margin to 67-64. With 54 seconds left in the game, Jordan Rhodes made it a two-point game. CCC's Kendric Warren missed the front end of a 1-and-1 situation with 41 seconds left, and on the ensuing possession, Horne knocked down a 3-pointer to give MACU just its second lead of the game at 70-69. After a timeout, the Tigers' Cam Martin scored to reclaim the lead for CCC, but with just two second left, Martin was whistled for a foul, sending Horne to the line where he made two free throws to put MACU up 72-71. Jubril Osagie got a look at the bucket at the buzzer, but the shot went begging, and MACU held on for the victory to advance to the regional championship game.
Horne led the Evangels with 17 points in the game, and he was joined in double-figures by Perry (12) and Cade Upshaw (10). Bogle scored nine points and grabbed a team-high six rebounds in the win. As a team, MACU made 23-of-57 (40.4%) shots in the game, but only 7-of-25 (28%) from long range. MACU was also 19-for-24 (79.2%) from the foul line.
MACU will next face the Bobcats of the College of the Ozarks (21-11) for the central region championship on Friday at 7 p.m.
