Long-range shooting propels Pioneers past Storm

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Simpson College men's basketball team opened its two-game slate at the Music City Classic with a 70-62 loss to the Carroll Pioneers on Wednesday.

Both teams made 23 field goals during the contest, but the Pioneers (4-8) made 11-of-25 from behind the arc, while the Storm (4-6) made 6-of-20. Seven of Carroll's three-point makes came in the second half as the Pioneers shot nearly 54.0 percent from deep in the frame, connecting four in a span of four minutes to build a lead that was too much for Simpson to overcome.

Eight points from Buck Eagleburger and a layup by Andrew Curran gave Simpson an early 10-5 lead over the Pioneers before they flipped the script with 10 of the next 11 points to hold a four-point advantage over the Storm. Curran hit a three out of a Simpson timeout and the Storm put together a 9-3 run to regain the lead at 23-20 with 3:32 remaining in the first half.

After Carroll ended the first on a 10-0 spurt and knocked down a pair of triples in the opening minutes of the second stanza, the Storm mounted a 15-5 run fueled by six points from Chris Honz to trail by one, 41-40, with 10:47 left. The Pioneers then distanced themselves once more with four 3-pointers over the course of their next six possessions, and the Storm were unable to cut the gap closer than five the rest of the way.

Curran led all scorers with 14 points and had six assists, six rebounds and a steal, while Honz finished the game with 13 points and six rebounds. Eagleburger tallied a career-high 11 points and Deontei Johnson led the team with seven boards.

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Simpson will play its final game of the 2021 year against Tufts on Thursday. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m.