Men's basketballThe fourth-ranked Central Lakes College Raiders incurred their third loss in 26 games Wed., Feb. 22 at Fergus Falls, when the M State Spartans took advantage of some home cooking and cold Raider shooting for a 74-59 upset to avenge a 92-66 shellacking in Brainerd on Jan.28. The winners made 48% from the field, while the losers converted just 39% of their shots. M State went to the line for 26 attempts, making 14 (56%) and CLC earned 11 points in 15 free throw attempts (73%). The Spartans fired 8 of 16 from beyond the arc for 24 of their points. CLC made just 4 of 21 (19%). Head Coach Jim Russell of CLC said the Raiders always face a "tough environment" at Fergus Falls and the winners "came to play." He was mystified that the Raiders had such a bad night of shooting. "If you can't shoot the ball you aren't going to win many games," he told the Brainerd Dispatch. The only Raiders to score in double figures: Ronnie Kornbaum with 12, Maurice Hernandez with 11. CLC, M State, and Rochester (defeated Mn West Wed., 72-71) now share the Southern Division lead at 8-3. Saturday's finale home game vs. Rochester looms even larger than it had as a factor in seeding for the MCAC tournament March 2-4 in Coon Rapids. Not to mention pride and "bragging rights" that go with surviving as Southern Division season champs. M State is expected to defeat Ridgewater Saturday to retain its piece of the top spot.
Women's basketball
Sophomore All-Conference standout Nikki Pearson (shown) of Staples scored 18 points for the CLC women, but the M State Spartans notched their second win of the season over the Raiders, 72-59, at Fergus Falls. Jalynn Lamb added 14 and Elizabeth Mattson 10. The losers made 39% of their shots, but the winners converted just 37%. M State made 22 of 30 from the line, while CLC made 11 of its 16 tries in a lop-sided distribution of personal fouls. CLC is now 2-9 in the Southern Division and at 8-16 will play its final game of the 2011-12 season on Saturday vs. Rochester (8-3, 19-6) at 1 p.m.
