Morningside wins 2OT thriller, clinches GPAC title outright

SEWARD, Neb. — It took a little longer on Saturday, but the Morningside men's basketball team was more than willing to grind out 10 extra minutes to earn the win.

Morningside (19-5, 16-1 GPAC) held off Concordia 123-115 in double overtime on the road to earn the Great Plains Athletic Conference regular-season title and make it to the NAIA Tournament for the fourth straight year.

Saturday's point total was also the fourth most in school history in a single game.

"That was about as fun as it gets," said head coach Trent Miller on the KMNS-AM postgame show. "Every game is a test to see what we're made of, and both teams played really good basketball. We're thrilled that we punched our ticket this early. We have three games left, and we still want to continue to grow."

The Mustangs had their backs against the wall, down six in the final minute of regulation, and down seven during the first OT period.

Morningside was down 102-95 with 1 minute, 10 seconds remaining in OT, but the Mustangs made seven consecutive free throws to tie the game. The last three made free throws came after Kaden Van Regenmorter was fouled during a 3-point attempt.

"Kaden is nails, that's just who he is," Miller said. "For a 19-year-old to play a road game that has the feel of a national tournament, I couldn't be more proud. That's just who he is."

The Mustangs used that energy to score 21 points during the second five-minute period, and Alex Wilcoxson scored 10 points alone during that stretch. Wilcoxson led the Mustangs with 28 points, making 10 shots and four free throws in all 50 minutes played on Saturday.

"We kept going back to him and another kid who loves big moments. The kid is tough," Miller said.

Wilcoxson wasn't the only Mustang who scored 20-plus points. Caleb Dreckman connected on five 3s to help him score 25 points (he also had seven assists), while Fitzy Grant contributed 23 off the bench.

Daniel Brocaille hit seven free throws en route to a 19-point game, while Van Regenmorter scored 18.

Morningside outrebounded the Bulldogs, 36-33, led by Grant with eight. The Mustangs also dominated the paint with 58.

The Mustangs stay on the road at 7:45 p.m. Wednesday night contest at Northwestern.