Bulldogs roast No. 15 Bethel

By STEVE SELL, Sentinel Sports Editor

It looked like the wrong team was ranked No. 15 in the country here Thursday night.

McPherson College's Bulldogs stared right into the eyes of Bethel College's No. 15 NAIA national ranking and never blinked.

Once the Bulldogs erased an early 12-3 deficit, they played textbook basketball, leading by as many as 30 in the second half before finishing with a stunning 88-62 victory over the defending conference champions, who had gone 7-1 in the preseason with wins over highly regarded competition.

"A couple of weeks ago, we played over in the Bethel Classic and I came away very impressed with the way they played in terms of intensity," Mac coach Roger Trimmell said. "We got together and decided you've got to play physical, in-your-face defense. We felt like if we wanted to come out here and compete with these teams, that's what we had to do."

Once Mac weathered the early storm, it inched ahead 41-36 by halftime. But in the second half, the Bulldogs totally shackled the Threshers, outscoring them 47-26 and allowing Bethel to shoot just 43 percent for the game while shooting 54 themselves.

"It was just a great, great effort," Trimmell said.

And it was another great, great performance by Kenny Romero, who put on a post clinic with 28 points, hitting 10 of 14 from the floor and 8 of 8 at the line. "Kenny's really a load right now," Trimmell said.

Guards Cody Rierson and Roy McDonald added 13 and 12 points respectively. The bench also stepped up big, as Jordan Carter scored 9 first-half points, while Lee Gustafson brought energy to the lineup with his relentless play.

"Everybody who stepped on the floor did the job," Trimmell said. "I never expected this. We stepped it up tremendously on the defensive end."

And the Bulldogs, thought to be soft on the boards, outrebouded the taller Threshers by a shocking 44-24 margin. McDonald, despite being a point guard, yanked down a team-high 8.

Ryan Lohfink led Bethel with 19. The Threshers, who rely greatly on the 3-pointer, made just 3 of 22 against the Mac pressure.

The Bulldogs, now 7-2 overall, go on the road Saturday to play Saint Mary, which knocked off Southwestern 76-70 Thursday.

Mac (88) -- Rierson 3 7-7 13; Cox 1 1-2 4; McDonald 6 0-0 12; Carter 2 3-4 9; Hooks 4 0-2 9; Soto 2 0-4 4; Pitts 0 2-2 2; Gustafson 2 1-1 5; Turner 1 0-0 2; Romero 10 8-8 28. Totals -- 31 22-30 88. 3-pointers -- Carter 2, Cox 1, Hooks 1.

Bethel (62) -- Garcia 3 1-2 8; Gregory 3 0-0 6; Goering 0 4-5 4; Weinbrenner 1 0-1 3; Howie 2 0-0 4; Artaz 1 0-0 2; Charles 1 0-0 2; Gerber 4 1-1 10; Lohfink 7 5-9 19; Morgan 2 0-0 4. Totals -- 24 11-18 62. 3-pointers -- Garcia 1, Weinbrenner 1, Gerber 1.