The Malone College men’s basketball team’s season came to an end on Tuesday night at Osborne Hall as Cedarville guard Ryan Short hit a clutch jumper with 0.6 seconds remaining to clinch an 84-83 victory in the title game of the American Mideast Conference Tournament and give the visiting Yellow Jackets an automatic bid to the NAIA Division II National Tournament.

 

Malone trailed 77-70 with six minutes to play before a 9-2 Pioneer run knotted the score 79-79 at the 3:25 mark of the second half.  After each squad came up empty on its next few possessions, Malone senior forward Tyler Renner (Garaway H.S.) stepped to the free throw line with 60 seconds remaining and drained both of his attempts to put the Pioneers in front by two at 81-79.  Short then missed a jumper on Cedarville’s next trip down the floor and, following a Malone timeout, Renner scored on a tough drive to the bucket to push the Pioneer lead to 83-79 with 16 ticks showing on the game clock.  The Yellow Jackets immediately cut the deficit back to one, however, as just seconds after Renner’s big shot, Cedarville point guard Grant Walker nailed a three-pointer to trim Malone’s lead to 83-82.  The Yellow Jackets immediately fouled on the Pioneers’ ensuing inbounds play, setting up two free attempts with 10 seconds remaining.  Both of Malone’s shots from the charity stripe were off the mark, though, giving Cedarville one last chance.  Short’s go-ahead jumper rolled around the rim before finally trickling in to put the Yellow Jackets on top 84-83 with 0.6 showing on the scoreboard.  Malone attempted to get off a desperation shot, but the final horn sounded before the Pioneers could launch a deep three-point attempt.  Following the tough 84-83 loss, Malone ends its successful season with a 21-10 overall record and a 7-3 mark in the American Mideast Conference North Division.  Cedarville, ranked No. 18 in the final NAIA Division II National Poll, improved to 22-7 with the win and advances to the national tournament for the fifth time in the last six seasons.

 

Although the Yellow Jackets hit over 57% (8 of 14) of their three-pointers in the opening stanza, Malone kept things close throughout the first half, trailing by a slim 46-45 margin at intermission.  Cedarville then stretched its lead out to seven points midway through the final frame before the Pioneers fought back to set up the dramatic finish.

 

Both teams shot the ball well in Tuesday’s contest as the Yellow Jackets connected on 49.2% (31 of 63) of their overall shots, 48% (12 of 25) of their three-pointers and 90.9% (10 of 11) of their free throws.  Malone held a 33-27 advantage in total rebounds and made 52.7% (29 of 55) of its field goal attempts, 42.9% (9 of 21) of its treys, and 80% (16 of 20) if its shots from the free throw line.

 

Renner turned in an incredible performance in the final game of his Malone playing career as he registered a career-high 36 points (14-21 FG, 3-6 3PT FG, 5-6 FT) to go with seven rebounds, five assists, and two steals.  Senior guard Ben Carver (Shelby H.S.) followed with 17 points, five assists and two steals.  Senior center Shane Humphrey (Loudonville H.S.) tallied 14 points and six boards and junior forward Jarrod Ferwerda (Lake H.S.) tossed in eight points.

 

Cedarville was led by guard Chris Beals, who notched 21 points (6-11 FG, 5-9 3PT FG, 4-5 FT).  Matt Harner came off the bench to post 13 points while Short finished the game with 12 points and five assists.

 

Pioneer Notes: Tyler Renner led the team in scoring this season at 18.0 points per game followed by Carver at 16.0 and Humphrey at 11.3…Renner also paced the squad in rebounding with 8.2 boards per outing followed by Humphrey with 6.0 and Carver with 5.1…Carver averaged a team-high 3.0 assists per outing this year.