Eagles Season Comes to End at MCCC Tournament

The Emmaus Eagles men's basketball season came to a close last weekend at the MCCC Tournament in Joplin, MO.

The Eagles fought tenaciously and proved competitive in two rematches against recent conference opponents, Barclay College and Central Christian College of the Bible. 

In the MCCC Tournament opener against Barclay, the Eagles looked to reverse the result from their last game of the regular season.  On Feb. 15, Barclay was able to pull away from the Eagles, to earn a 79-53 victory.  Just five days later, the Eagles came prepared and ready to test the #2-seeded Bears in Joplin.  

The Eagles started the rematch strong, and finished the first half on a 9-0 run to cut the Bears' lead to 38-27 at the half.  A three-pointer from Austin Brammer to start the second half, and 7 consecutive points from Brandon Redding would see the Barclay lead reduced to 43-37 at the 17:00 minute mark.

Barclay would respond however, and reassert control of the game, en route to a 74-61 victory.  Brammer would go on to finish with 17 points, connecting 5 times from beyond the arc, and Redding would finish with a double-double, posting a game-high 39 points and 11 rebounds.  The final score saw the Eagles improve offensively and defensively from the previous weekend, and cut the final margin in half from the Feb. 15 match-up.

The next day, the Eagles faced off against the CCCB Saints in the consolation game.   Just two weeks earlier, the high-paced, pressing Saints squad flew past the Eagles, 121-77 in Moberly, MO.  In the rematch, the Eagles were able to control the tempo and pace, and found themselves within one, 24-23, at the 10-minute mark of the first half.  The Eagles continued their efficient play, and went into the locker room down six, 42-36, at the half.

That was as close as the Eagles would get however, as the Saints reestablished their up-tempo pace and soared passed the Eagles by a final score of 90-70.  Eyo Amare finished with 15 for the Eagles, while Redding again eclipsed the 30-point mark, tallying 34 on the night.  And Brammer finished 1 assist shy of a triple-double with 14 points, 10 rebounds and 9 assists. 

While the Eagles came away from the tournament without a win, interim head coach Chris McHugh noted, "Our team made a lot of progress this semester.  We were able to integrate 7 new players into the team, and build the team concept in the middle of our season.  Several opposing coaches and referees shared their compliments of our team this week, and the improved scorelines and effort, leave me proud of how our group competed this year."