CHADRON, Neb. – The Chadron State College men's basketball team saw a 23-point first-half lead turn into a back-and-forth battle down the stretch, but Adams State came out ahead 92-90 in a fast-paced, physical Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference contest in the Chicoine Center in Chadron.

The Eagles (3-12, 1-6 RMAC) led 37-14 midway in the first half and were still ahead by a dozen — 56-44 — at halftime, but Adams State (10-5, 4-3 RMAC) took the lead with six-and-a-half minutes to play and the lead changed hands four times down the stretch. Chadron State scored a season-high 90 points and never trailed by more than four in the heartbreaking setback. 

Junior point guard Mack Keighran led the Eagles with 30 points and became the first Chadron State player to tally 30 or more in a game this season. He was 7-of-11 from the field, including 5-of-8 from three-point range, and made 11 of 13 free throws.

Twice in the late going, the native of Australia made big plays that helped the Eagles fight to the wire. With 6:15 to play, Keighran rebounded his own miss for a putback layup that tied the score at 77-77. Then, with 1:37 left, he hit a deep 3-pointer that put the Eagles back on top at 90-89. 

Both teams missed their next field goal shot, but Adams State's Dillan Baker drove for a layup with 34 seconds remaining to give the visitors the lead again. After the Eagles missed a layup with 17 seconds still showing and the Grizzlies got the rebound, the visitors' leading scorer, Emilek Jallow, made one of two free throws.  

Sandwiched around a travel call against Adams State, the Eagles got off two hurried field goal shots in the final six seconds that could have won or tied the game, but neither connected.

Other double-figure scorers for Chadron State were senior Isaiah Randolph with 17, redshirt freshman Jackson Schauer with 12 and senior Zach Smith with 11. Schauer's total included a trio a three-pointers, which happened in quick succession early in the game.

Jadon Cool, CSC's leading scorer for the season who had scored at least 18 points in four of the last five games, ran into early foul trouble and sat out more than half the contest while finishing with just seven points. 

The Eagles were 16-of-33 (48.5 percent) from the field in the first half, including 8-of-15 on threes, but were 10-of-34 (29.4 percent) and just 2- of-14 from behind the arc in the second half. CSC's free throw shooting was terrific throughout the game—16-18 in the first half and 12-13 in the last 30 minutes.

Adams State struggled at the free throw line, making just 18 of 31 for 58.1 percent for the game, but the Grizzlies were 31-62 from the field and 12 of 30 from long range—making seven of their treys in the first half and five in the second. Adams State made 56 percent of its field goal attempts as a team in the second half.

Five Grizzlies scored in double digits in the game, led by Jallow, a 6-foot-6 sophomore who finished with 26 points, most of them in the paint where Adams State outscored the Eagles 38 to 20 points.  

CSC freshman Luka Djurovic had 11 rebounds for the Eagles while Blessing Adesipe added nine. 

The Eagles will be at home again Saturday afternoon against New Mexico Highlands (5-13, 3-4 RMAC), which fell to Black Hills State in Spearfish on Thursday night 79-74.  

Adams State—Emilek Jallow 26, Wyatt Helming 17, Dillan Baker 13, Jayce King 12, Jarmell Johnson 11, Jerrick Guidry 8, Ivan Dorn Jr. 3, Jaylen Alexander 2. Totals: 31-62 FG, (12-30 3PT), 18-31 FT, 92 points, 40 rebounds, 19 assists, 14 turnovers.

Chadron State—Mack Keighran 30, Isaiah Randolph 17, Jackson Schauer 13, Zach Smith 11, Jadon Cool 7, Blessin Adesipe 7, Luka Djurovic 5. Totals: 26-67 FG, (10-29 3PT), 28-31 FT, 90 points, 35 rebounds, 10 assists, 11 turnovers.

Grizzlies Turn Tables on Eagle WBB

CHADRON, Neb. – Chadron State led by double digits at halftime, but a talented Adams State team reeled the Eagles back in and took over in the second half to defeat CSC by a 74-64 final score on Thursday evening at the Chicoine Center. 

The Eagles (1-11, 1-6 RMAC) scored 21 points in the first quarter and took their largest lead of the night when Ella Moser hit a three with five seconds remaining in the first half to make it 38-27 Eagles at halftime, but Adams State (12-5, 6-1 RMAC) outscored the hosts 29-11 in the third quarter and took off from there.

McKenzi Petersen starred for the Eagles, shooting 9-for-14 from the field to score a CSC career-high 20 points along with six rebounds. Moser finished with 13 points, including a trio of three-pointers, and added three steals on the defensive end. 

Freshman point guard Kenna Wagner set a career high with five assists and contributed eight points and four rebounds. Evelyn Old Coyote led the team with eight rebounds, doubling her previous season high of four.

The Eagles shot 42.6 percent from the field, 25 percent from three (6-24) and 60 percent from the line (6-10). Chadron State went 9-for-17 from the field (52.9 percent) and 3-for-7 from deep (42.9 percent) in the first quarter.

The Grizzlies improved their field goal percentage in every quarter, shooting just 31.2 percent in the first but upping that to 38.4 percent in the second, 39.1 percent in the third and 41.7 percent in the fourth quarter. Adams State also more than tripled CSC's free-throw attempts, making 21 of 31 foul shots. 

Adams State's Kiiyani Anitielu, who last season set the RMAC single-game scoring record with 52 points against Westminster, led the charge for the Grizzlies with a season-high 30 points, her highest scoring total since that record-breaking game. Sophomore Taejhuan Hill had a 13-point, 12-rebound double-double for ASU.

Chadron State started hot. The Eagles went to Petersen for layups in the paint twice plus a three from Audrey Quintana to take a 7-3 lead just three minutes into the game. Leading 16-15, the Eagles went on a 5-0 run in the final 90 seconds of the first quarter, with an Amya Winfrey layup and Ella Moser three stretching CSC's advantage to 21-15.

Petersen scored seven of CSC's 17 points in quarter number two while Dreanna Jackson added all five of her points for the game. The Eagles held a six-point lead – 32-26 – with 45 seconds remaining in the first half when Petersen converted a layup with a foul and hit the ensuing free throw. After Adams State went 1-for-2 from the line at the other end, Moser drained her third three-pointer of the half off an assist from Alex Ridenour to give CSC a double-digit lead at the break, 38-27.

Unfortunately, that would be the high mark on the night for the Eagles, as the Grizzlies came out with renewed defensive energy and forced Chadron State into 14 turnovers in the third period alone. Adams State converted those 14 third-quarter turnovers into 16 points, outscoring CSC 29-11 overall in the quarter and turning the 11-point deficit into a seven-point lead.

For the game, Chadron State had 24 turnovers while the Grizzlies had just 11. That helped Adams State overcome CSC's rebounding advantage, as the Eagles plucked 48 rebounds compared to ASU's 37.

Chadron State will have another chance to win on its home floor when the Eagles welcome New Mexico Highlands (6-8, 2-5 RMAC) on Saturday at 1 p.m.

Chadron State—McKenzi Petersen 20, Ella Moser 13, Kenna Wagner 8, Audrey Quintana 7, Dreanna Jackson 5, Keziah Toran 4, Amya Winfrey 4, Evelyn Old Coyote 3. Totals: 26-61 FG (6-24 3PT) 6-10 FT. 64 points, 48 rebounds, 13 assists, 24 turnovers.

?Adams State—Kiiyani Anitielu 30, Taejhuan Hill 13, Ashiian Hunter 10, Elaina Watson 9, Mia Ervin 5, Jada Price 4, Jaden Ferris 2, Brya Brooklyn Arroyo-Gillcreese 1. Totals: 24-64 FG (5-16 3PT) 21-31 FT. 74 points, 37 rebounds, 12 assists, 11 turnovers.