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After a poor shooting performance in a crucial conference game, there is some needed reflection to be had for the Montcalm Community College Centurions men’s basketball team, according to its head coach. 

“I told them it’s a soul-searching moment for them,” MCC head coach Zach Ingles said after the home loss, Saturday, Feb. 7. “They have to find a way to get themselves in the gym, shoot the ball and make some shots.” 

The game matched two of the top three MCCAA Northern Conference teams, which the Centurions (6-3 MCCAA Northern, 13-10 overall) held a one-game lead against the Norse (6-3 MCCAA Northern, 17-6 overall) coming into this game. However, MCC shot only 31.1% (19-of-61) from the field and drained only three of the 28 shots it took from the 3-point line, which Ingles directly contributed to his team’s loss. 

“We don’t shoot the ball. It’s that simple, we don’t shoot the ball,” he said in frustration. “We talk all the time that shooting is something you have to resolve on your own. We do a lot of that in practice, but that’s not enough. It’s you versus on your own. Our guys don’t shoot on their own. They think it just happens, they think they can just shoot it, it doesn’t. And if you neglect it, it goes away. And that’s exactly what happened.” 

Despite its shooting struggles, MCC established a 38-33 lead with 11:10 to go in the game after sophomore Zhian Briggs (Augusta, Ga.) made a steal, creating a fast break resulting into an easy lay-up.  

Bay was then called for back-to-back defensive fouls that put both its big man, Savion Johnson, and Taveon Vann in foul trouble, both collecting their fourth fouls.  

The Norse, however, recovered, with Trevor Nolan nailing a 3-pointer on Bay’s next offensive drive, cutting the lead to 38-36 with 9:55 to go. Bay then took the lead a minute later when Kyle Hustrulid was found under the basket all alone, scoring an easy bucket to give the Norse a 42-40 lead.  

A minute later, MCC sophomore Jahmere Evans (Indianapolis, Ind.) sank a jumper to take back the lead, however Bay answered, tying the score at 44-44 with seven minutes to go. Suddenly, the Centurions’ poor shooting caught up to them as Bay went on an 11-1 run, establishing a 55-45 lead with just 2:09 left in the game, forcing Ingles to call a timeout. 

MCC could not get any closer as the Centurions went into fouling mode to reserve time on the clock. The Norse shot 4-for-4 from the free throw line to ice the game.  

Ingles said his players must start focusing on getting better individually. With five games left in the regular season, he said his team is in win-now mode. 

“We got Muskegon on Wednesday and now it’s become a must-win,” Ingles said. “We are at the point now where we need to play better. We simply need to play better. We haven’t played well in a while. We’re too concerned about what we look like versus how we perform. And that’s a troublesome spot to be in. We’ve been trending that way and today it came to a head.” 

The Norse outrebounded the Centurions, 51-43. MCC led in other categories, such as assists (12-11), points off turnovers (16-13), second-chance points (9-6) and bench scoring (23-17).  

Briggs had a game-high 16 points and collected five rebounds while freshman teammate James Browning (Fort Wayne, Ind.) came off the bench to score 11 points and earned four rebounds.  

Bay was led by William Kelley with 13 points and Hustrulid, who finished with 10 points. Emerson Droubie almost earned a double-double, scoring eight points while collecting a game-high 14 rebounds.  

UP NEXT: The Centurions travel to Muskegon Wednesday, Feb. 11, to take on the Muskegon Community College Jayhawks (4-5 MCCAA Northern, 10-12 overall). The Centurions won the first meeting between the two teams, an 89-67 win at home, Jan. 26.  

MCC is currently tied with Bay College for second place in the MCCAA Northern while Muskegon is fifth. Mid Michigan leads the conference with a 9-0 record.