Eagles Lose in Final Minute to Barclay Bears

By Loretta Gamboe, Staff Writer

ANKENY, Iowa—It was the one that got away. After leading for most of Friday night's fast-paced game and outplaying their opponent in so many ways, the Faith Eagles lost in the final seconds to the Barclay Bears, 70-69. 

The Eagles had a slow start as they struggled against the Bears' full court pressure.  After five minutes of play, the score was 6-11. The Eagles called a timeout that led to a 12-0 run in the next five minutes, making the score 18-11.  The Eagles continued to fight to build up their lead, gaining their biggest lead of the game at 34-20 with five minutes left in the half.  With two minutes left, the Eagles had a 37-24 advantage over the Bears, but Barclay went on a 7-0 run to slice the Eagles' lead in half, 37-31, by halftime. 

In the second half, the Eagles struggled to maintain possession of the ball, but managed to hold onto their lead despite the Bears tying the score five times in the second half.  The Eagles gained their biggest lead of the second half at 54-47 with just over twelve minutes left to play. 

With four minutes left in the game, the score was tied at 64, but the Eagles scored twice in the next minute to make the score to 68-64.  The Bears made two free throws to bring the score to 68-66, and another free throw with two minutes left in the game made it a one-point game.  The Eagles scored their final point of the game with a made free throw to gain a 2-point advantage 69-67, but Barclay responded with a 3-point play with twenty seconds left in the game.  The Eagles couldn't make a basket before the final buzzer and lost the game, 69-70. 

The Eagles shot 44.8% from the field on Friday night, making 30 of 67 shots, and 5 of 18 from the 3-point line.  The Bears shot 47.6%, making 30 of 63 shots from the field and 4 of 16 from the 3-point line.  The Eagles outrebound the Bears, 36-30. 

The Eagles put forth a great team effort as every player that saw game action scored. 14 of the Eagles' 30 made field goals came off assists.  Tanner Van Beek led the Eagles in scoring with a season-high 25 points.  Kalab Sidlinger and Chase Clark also scored in double digits. Sidlinger had 12 points while Clark contributed 10 points and 8 rebounds. 

The Eagles return to action with another home game on Saturday, January 12, against Manhattan Christian College at 4 p.m.