For Immediate Release
st. louis, missouri
January 3, 2009
Zasada rings in new year to tune of career-high 28 points
Boxscore
Eureka College junior Michael Zasada (McHenry, Ill./HS) poured in 28 points and made 6-of-9 from three-point range, but he could not save the Red Devils from their third consecutive close defeat to begin conference play. Zasada had 15 points in the second half as Eureka erased an early 16-point Maryville University advantage to grab a three point lead only to see the Saints pull out a 77-72 victory in the end.
Surprisingly, one of Red Devils' (2-9, 0-3 SLIAC) greatest advantages on paper may well have cost them the game; that, and the sizzling start to the game of the Saints' Kyle Winters.
Eureka entered the contest with a league best free throw percentage of 77.2 percent. On the flip side, Maryville (6-5, 2-0 SLIAC) was ranked last at 62.4 percent. But in Saturday afternoon's match up, it was the homestanding Saints shooting 14-for-20 at the line for 70 percent, while the Red Devils managed to make just half of their 14 attempts.
Missed free throws were the least of Eureka's worries in the first half as simply getting to the foul line proved to be a losing cause. The Red Devils first free throw attempt did not occur until the opening stages of the second half. Meanwhile, Winters was threatening to single-handedly lift the Saints to victory. He canned five three-pointers in the first 8:30 of the game, staking Maryville to a 23-13 lead. He went on to score 17 points in the first half, capping it off with a layup that moved the Saints ahead 34-18 at the 5:56 mark.
Eureka was not about to go down without a fight though. The Red Devils gained needed momentum heading into halftime by allowing just one point over the rest of the frame after falling behind by 16. Zasada hit a pair of three-pointers near the end of the half to get EC within 35-28 at intermission.
The good times continued for Zasada and the Red Devils early in the second half as the junior forward sank two more treys, then watched teammate Brady Wildenradt (Delavan, Ill./HS) convert an old fashioned three-point play to move Eureka within 41-40.
The teams traded three-point baskets before Wildenradt tied the game at 44 on a free throw with 15:08 remaining. It was the first time the game was tied since the score was 7-7. Eureka's first lead came moments later after a three-pointer by Jordan Kindred (Chrisman, Ill./HS) made it 47-46. The lead switched hands on six occasions and the score was tied five times as the clock wound down in regulation.
Maryville moved ahead 70-64 with 3:13 to play, but Eureka rallied back with a layup by Murad Abbed (Danville, Ill./Bismarck-Henning) and two free throws by Zasada to make it 70-68 with 1:55 left. Jason Simmons connected on a short jumper to increase the Saints' lead to four, then on the ensuing possession, EC was called for an offensive foul, which tuned the ball over to Maryville with 1:21 to go. The Saints were able to make enough free throws the rest of the way to avoid facing any potential game-tying or game-winning shots by Eureka.
Zasada's previous career-high was 24 points set last season. He led EC on the boards as well with nine. The Red devils shot 60 percent (15-for-25) from the field in the second half, including 7-for-15 from behind the arc. Wildenradt finished with 11 points, five assists and no turnovers. Mark Darnall (Lake Mills, Wis./HS) put in eight points to go with four rebounds. Kindred and Kameron Bell (Clinton, Ill./HS) had seven points apiece, with Bell chipping in seven boards and three steals.
Aaron Steinke scored 15 points in the second half to match Winters with 23 on the day for Maryville. Additionally, Steinke pulled in 11 rebounds helping the Saints earn a 50-36 rebounding edge. They shot 42 percent overall compared to 41 percent for Eureka.
The Red Devils will continue league play Wednesday, January 7 at Blackburn College. The 8:00 pm tip-off is critical to both long-time rivals as they each will enter the game still in search of their first SLIAC triumph.
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For More Information Contact:
Bryan Moore
Sports Information Director
Eureka College
300 E. College Avenue
Eureka, Illinois 61530
309-467-6456
bmoore@eureka.edu
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