MidAmerica Nazarene center Justin Randall hit a 17-foot shot with 2.1 seconds remaining to lift the Pioneers over Evangel 72-70 at Bell Arena in Olathe, Kansas on Thursday.
The Crusaders tied the game at 70 with 25 seconds left on two made free throws by Dylan Bekemeier. MidAmerica Nazarene worked the clock down and point guard Nick Syrie found Randall for the game-winning shot. Bekemeier's 75 foot desperation attempt went just short at the buzzer.
"We probably missed a few too many free throws but I thought we really battled, especially in the second half," said Evangel head coach Steve Jenkins. "We rebounded much better in the second half and I thought we ran our offense better in the second half after settling for too many three-point attempts."
The Crusaders went 17 for 25 from the foul line with Bekemeier hitting all 10 of his attempts. Evangel was out-rebounded 44-38 in the game but allowed nine offensive rebounds in the first half and 13 for the game. The Crusaders were 1 for 18 from three-range after going 0 for 11 in the opening half.
Bekemeier led all scorers with 20 points.
Gabriel Jordan had 19 points to lead the Pioneers.
Evangel dropped to 3-13 and 2-7 in the Heart of America conference. MidAmerica Nazarene went to 11-6 and 5-4 in the league.
The Crusaders are home on Saturday to play Culver-Stockton. Game time is 4 p.m. in the Ashcroft Center.
