To the dismay of California Lutheran University, the Kingsmen basketball team lost a valiant fight to Claremont-Mudd-Scripps on Feb. 27 by a score of 77-51 to end Cal Lutheran’s running for the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference tournament.

The third meeting between the two teams opened with an early 6-4 lead in favor of the Kingsmen with senior forward Coltrane Powdrill finishing off with a hard charge and a slam-dunk according to CLUsports.com.

In the minutes preceding the half, Cal Lutheran responded to the CMS jump in points with a 10-2 spree tying up the game.

“The points did help, it always helps to have a little momentum going into half time,” Junior forward Guy Lynott said.

The game was hard fought on both sides, however CMS secured basket after basket to bring them in the lead, closing the half ahead of Cal Lutheran 37-30.

The scoreboard favored the Stags for much of the second half, as they outscored he Kingsmen 40-21, according to CLUsports.com. Cal Lutheran shot 27.3 percent compared to the 59 percent that CMS was putting up.

In his last game as a Kingsmen, Powdrill deserves recognition considering his 11-for-11 from the free throw line and a 21 point total. Also deserving acknowledgment is senior guard Arik Smith, scoring seven of his 10 points in the seconds before the half and finishing with a breakaway dunk according to CLUsports.com.

The Stags had a very apparent aura of organization during the entire game and required mental and physical strictness from their opponents.

“The biggest challenge with playing Claremont is their discipline. They are very well coached and run their offense very week. They also don’t take chances on defense and force you to make mistakes,” Lynott said.

With a team as sharp as CMS, an equal amount of sharpness is paramount to have prior to the game. Preparedness is something the Kingsmen have down, practicing CMS’s plays to ensure they are ready for them during the game.

“We also spend all week working on their plays and ours to try and counter them.” Lynott said. “Mentally, I just try and stay relaxed because it’s just another game like any other.“

Being relaxed but ready in the face of completion is just as crucial as having the athletic chops to compete at the collegiate level.

On another hand, the athletic aspect requires an effective warm up. As a team, our Kingsmen get ready using the same technique they have used the entire season, according to Lynott.

“Our warm up routine is we shoot around until 30 minutes till tipoff. Then we go back to the locker room and go over the game plan one more time. Then we come out, do lay ups and a few other drills.”

These fundamental aspects are traits that almost every team shares, however the outcome to this game was up to the teams and rested on the shoulders of the very talented Stags and Kingsmen.

Connor McKinney
Staff Writer
Published March 4th, 2015