No. 12 NIACC ousts No. 9 Eagles at buzzer
Luke Appel and Niko Gosnell, a pair of big men with big goals this season, sat on a bench in the hallway outside the Kirkwood locker room Thursday night and cried after an excruciating loss ended their season.
Gosnell put his hand on Appel's shoulder, trying to console his buddy, and they finally got up and disappeared inside, no doubt to shed a few more tears.
Kirkwood's goal of winning back-to-back national titles ended in the regional semifinals at Johnson Hall, but not for lack of effort or emotion.
Deundra Roberson hit a shot near the basket as time expired to snap a 74-74 tie and give 12th-ranked NIACC a devastating 76-74 victory over No. 9 Kirkwood in a tense battle marred by 45 fouls in 40 minutes of basketball.
NIACC (25-6) will face fifth-ranked DMACC (28-4) in the regional finals Saturday for a spot in the NJCAA Division II national tournament. That's where Kirkwood desperately wanted to be, but the Eagles had to settle for a 24-6 final mark.
The tears flowed in abundance. Read more...
