Men Face Barclay in Opening Round of ACCA Tournament
The Faith men will face conference foe Barclay College in the opening round of the ACCA National Tournament. The tournament is hosted by Ozark Christian College with games being played at Ozark and Missouri Southern State University. The Eagles vs. Bears game will tip at 7:15 PM on February 27 in the Robert Young gymnasium on Missouri Southern's campus.
Faith will be looking for considerable improvement from the one time they faced Barclay this season. The teams met in Ankeny during the first semester, with Barclay taking control of the game midway through the first half on their way to a 104-70 win. The Eagles have improved considerably since that time, having faced several teams during the second semester that they lost to first semester. Faith went 5-1 during the second semester in games where they faced an opponent who had beaten them first semester. Their only loss came this past Friday in the regional semi-final which they lost by five to Trinity Bible College. The Trinity loss along with the Eagles two point victory over Grace University two weeks ago both featured rematch games which the Eagles had lost by nearly 50 points each during the first semester. The Eagles are hoping for similar results in their game with Barclay.
The Bears feature a potent offensive attack led by 1st Team All Conference player Charles Broadhead. The game will feature two stark contrasts in style of play. Barclay is second in the nation in ppg, averaging 87, while the Eagles are 13th in the nation in scoring defense, allowing 73 ppg. Faith will try to keep the game from turning in to a track meet, while Barclay will be looking to force turnovers and push the ball to score quickly in transistion or from a slashing half court attack.
Should the Eagles come out on top, they will face a very strong Hillsdale Free Will Baptist College on Thursday. A loss will send the Eagles to the consolation side of the bracket where they will face the loser of Dallas Christian College and AFLBS. The consolatin game will not be until Friday. Check back to the Eagle's website for updates and scores as the tournament progresses.
