Mustangs, Pioneers battle until the end

OLATHE, Kan. - The Mount Mercy men's basketball team used a 48-point second half to give MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) everything they had in a Heart of America Athletic Conference clash, before falling 89-84 on Saturday evening inside the Cook Center. 

A jumper from Kyle Kelley leveled the game at 14, before the Pioneers used 12-3 run to build their lead. The Mustangs stayed within shouting distance trailing by eight going into the half. MidAmerica Nazarene (15-5, 10-4 Heart) controlled much of the second half until the media timeout. Riley Pankey scored his first points of the game on a 3-pointer to bring Mount Mercy with three, 68-65, at the 8:18 mark. The Pioneers continued to keep the Mustangs at bay until consecutive jumpers from Ryan Bartley tied the game at 77 all. Pankey sank another triple, making it 85-84 to keep Mount Mercy (4-15, 1-13 Heart) alive with 2:48 to go. The Pioneers missed a couple free throws down the stretch, to leave the door open for the Mustangs. Mount Mercy went 0-for-5 from the field in the final two minutes, losing their fourth game of the season by five points or less. 

Bartley paced all players with 25 points. Pierson added 18 off the bench, sinking four 3-pointers. Jakari Bradley recorded eight rebounds, seven points and seven assists for the Mustangs. Caleb Jones-McCrary and Anthony Brown each had 20 for the Pioneers. 

After four games in one week, Mount Mercy has a couple of days off before traveling to Dubuque for a conference rematch against Clarke (9-10, 4-9 Heart) on Wednesday, Jan. 25 at the Kehl Center beginning at 7:30 pm.