Amsbaugh scores 31 as Storm snap Loras winning streak
| Final | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Loras (14-4, 7-2 IIAC) | 42 | 53 | 95 |
|
Simpson (11-7, 4-5 IIAC) | 48 | 53 | 101 |
INDIANOLA, Iowa — Sam Amsbaugh scored 31 points to lead six players in double figures and the Simpson men's basketball team snapped Loras' 11-game winning streak with a 101-95 win Wednesday at Cowles Fieldhouse.
Simpson tied a school-record for made free throws, going 47-for-55 in a wild game that saw the Storm (12-7, 5-5 Iowa Conference) build a 19-point lead only to watch Loras cut it to four in the final minute.
Ryan DiCanio's free throws made it 99-95 with 17 seconds left, but Austin Turner made free throws number 46 and 47 for the Storm and Matt Dacy-Seijo's 3 went off the mark, resulting in a sigh of relief from the Simpson sideline.
Austin Turner scored 16 points and Ryan Skaar added 10 from the Storm's starting five, but it was the bench that had a huge night. Ben Rajewski (11 points), Conor Riordan (10 points) and Jamie Montgomery (10 points) contributed to a 36-point effort for the reserves.
Amsbaugh went 8-for-12 from the field and 14-for-16 from the line in his third 30-point game of the season. He added eight rebounds.
Simpson took a 48-42 lead into the locker room after shooting 17-for-18 from the line in the first half. The game turned a little over 5 minutes into the second half when DJ Dafney's layup sparked a 13-0 run, giving Simpson a 68-52 lead at the 9:59 mark. Loras went 6 minutes, 42 seconds without a field goal during the spurt.
After Rajewski's 3 gave Simpson its largest lead with 8:26 to play, Loras started to whittle away at the lead. The Storm still held a 12-point lead with 2:31 left, but a Michael Mims layup and a pair of free throws from Dacy-Seijo made it 96-91 with 40 seconds left. But Simpson went 5 of 6 from the line in the final seconds to hold off the Loras charge.
DiCanio had 27 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Duhawks (14-5, 7-3), who lost for the first time since Dec. 7.
UP NEXT
Simpson travels to Wartburg on Saturday, Jan. 28. The Knights (13-6, 5-5) beat coe 68-60 on Wednesday. Simpson beat Wartburg 81-68 in the season's first meeting on Dec. 3.
