GOSHEN, Ind. — Austin Branagan led all scorers with 25 points Wednesday night and Tahj Curry added 24 as the Goshen College men's basketball team pushed Grace College to overtime before falling 90-78 at Ruth Gunden Gymnasium in the 130th installment of a Crossroads League rivalry that dates back to 1956.
Curry led the Maple Leafs with 6 assists, 5 rebounds and 2 steals in a game-high 44 minutes: Robert Sanders and Ryan Mansbarger each also played more than a regulation game as each team used seven players in the contest.
The Lancers (11-4, 4-2) had six players score in double figures, led by Jake Wadding with 18 points on 7-of-9 shooting. Frankie Davidson went for a double-double with 16 points and 15 rebounds while Elijah Malone shot 7-of-8 off the bench to score 15 points with 6 rebounds. Jakob Gibbs added 6 rebounds off the bench as well.
Goshen (3-15, 1-8) connected on 9 3-pointers, getting 3 apiece from Branagan and Curry along with 2 from Braden Kingery and 1 from Mansbarger. The team also made hay on the defensive end by forcing 25 turnovers, with three players posting two steals apiece and the team scoring 21 points off takeaways.
The Maple Leafs had better luck from long range than they did inside in the first half, scoring 15 of their 33 points on 3-pointers and shooting 42 percent from abroad compared to 38 percent at close range. Grace pulled ahead with a 7-2 run in the first six minutes and would lead for the rest of the half, including an 8-0 run to go up by as many as 12 points.
Curry's 3-pointer with two seconds left drew Goshen back within seven, 40-33, as the Lancers did not make a field goal in the last two minutes. Branagan led all scorers with 19 points at halftime.
Grace took its largest lead of the game after an 8-1 run to start the second half, but by the 10-minute mark the momentum was firmly in Goshen's corner. After trailing by double figures with 11:30 remaining, the Maple Leafs scored 21 of the next 27 points, taking the lead at the 7:49 mark on a Quincy Mussio layup and going up four with 6:06 left on a Mansbarger triple. Mansbarger scored 9 points and Kingery added 6 as six different players connected over the five-minute run.
The Lancers were not prepared to go down quietly, scoring the next six points to pull ahead again on an Elijah Malone putback with 4:14 remaining. The teams would trade baskets on their next possessions, culminating with Grace going up 73-70 on a Haden Deaton 3-pointer with 3:39 left.
Goshen would hold the Lancers scoreless for the rest of regulation as Grace missed three shots and turned the ball over four times. The Maple Leafs did themselves no favors, though, missing three shots before Curry made one of two free throws with 1:10 left to cut the lead to 73-71.
After a defensive rebound, Goshen called timeout with 33 seconds remaining, and a foul sent Curry to the line to tie the score at 73 with 24 seconds left. Each team had a chance to win the game with the shot clock off: Grace turned the ball over trying to enter the post with 0:07 left and Curry missed a shot on the other end as time ran out.
The Lancers won the opening tip in overtime and the momentum shifted almost immediately, starting an 8-0 run within the first 8 seconds. Grace made three of its first four shots while Goshen started 0-for-4 before Branagan stopped the bleeding at the 1:46 mark. That brought the hosts back within six at 81-75, but Grace used the entire shot clock before a Wadding 3 at the other end.
The final six Lancer points came at the foul line, where Grace was 25-of-32. The Lancers also finished with a commanding 47-23 rebound advantage and a 5-for-6 mark from the floor in the extra session.
Goshen will have to regroup quickly as it hits the road Saturday to begin a four-game road trip that includes back-to-back ranked opponents. The team travels to Mishawaka, Indiana, to play 19th-ranked Bethel University in the game that reaches the midpoint of the U.S. Highway 20 Cup series for this year; tip-off is set for 1 p.m. EST in the Wiekamp Athletic Center.
