(Story Courtesy of Trinity University)
RICHARDSON, Texas - The Trinity University men's basketball team suffered a narrow 75-73 loss to 12th-ranked Whitworth (WA) University in the opening round of the NCAA Playoffs on Friday night.
Trinity had a chance to tie the game at the end, as Whitworth missed the front end of a 1-and-1 at the foul line with 19 seconds left in the game. The Tigers missed two shots in the final seconds that would have tied the game.
Senior Zach Lambert shattered a Tiger playoff record with 36 points in the loss, connecting on 11-20 from the field and 11-14 from the free throw line. The previous high for the NCAA Playoffs was a 27-point night from Jason Morris during the 2004 tournament. Lambert also led the team with five rebounds and dished out a pair of assists. His 36 points are the most in any game by a Trinity player since Andy Bates scored 39 against Southwestern in 2005.
Robert Kitzinger finished with 16 points and four rebounds, adding a pair of steals, and also breaking Trinity's career record for three-point field goals. Kitzinger tied the record set by Rich Skeen (1990-94) in last weekend's Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championship game against Centenary, then broke it by hitting 2-5 from long range tonight.
Matt Selling rounded out Trinity's double digit scorers with 10 points on 3-6 shooting, and also hit a pair of three-pointers. Craig Saltarelli came off the bench to lead the team with five assists, while William Young added three for the Tigers. Young finishes the season with 112 assists, which is the fourth-highest single season total in school history.
Trinity led 36-35 at halftime, as both teams came out firing on all cylinders. Each team shot better than 50% from the field in the opening period, but only Whitworth was able to continue that pace. The Tigers dipped below 40% shooting in the second half, which included missing their last four field goal attempts.
Whitworth led most of the first half, pulling ahead by as many as nine points (22-13) midway through the period. An 11-3 Trinity run made it a one-possession game, though, and eventually, the Tigers pulled ahead by the break.
In the second half, Whitworth quickly pulled out in front, but could never build a lead bigger than five points for the entire period. Trinity rallied and took its last lead with 3:39 to play, pulling ahead 65-64, but Whitworth scored five straight to reclaim control.
The Pirates led 75-70 with 1:35 to play, after missing 1-2 at the foul line. Trinity also went 1-2 at the line to cut it to four points, then an offensive rebound with 28 seconds left led to two more foul shots. That led to the final seconds, during which the Tiger rally fell just short.
Trinity wraps up its season with an overall record of 19-10, finishing with a 12-3 record since January 17. Whitworth also beat the Tigers 71-53 in the 2013-14 season opener at the University of Puget Sound.
