Saturday Shootout - High-scoring battle headlines home, GPAC opener

SIOUX CITY, IOWA – Seventy-one field goals, 20 three-pointers, 184 points.

An offensive basketball fan's dream come true. In the end, a happy ending for Morningside College fans, too, Saturday, Nov. 16.

Senior center Tyler Borchers (SR/Le Mars, IA ) (LeMars, Iowa) uncorked a 31-point, 10-rebound double-double of big proportions, and junior guard Zach Imig (JR/Gretna, NE ) (Gretna, Neb.) was only four boards short of a triple-double, tallying 22 points, 10 assists and six rebounds to spark a 96-88 win for the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics' Division II No. 4-ranked Mustangs. The scoreboard registry for head coach Jim Sykes' squad, which ran its record to 4-0, didn't end there, either.

Senior forward Ben Hoskins (SR/Wayne, NE ) (Wayne, Neb.) came off the bench to hit four-of-six three-point baskets en route to 14 points. Senior guard Alex Borchers (SR/South Sioux City, NE ) (South Sioux City, Neb.) finished with 11 points and three assists; and senior forward Matt Hahn (SR/Fremont, NE ) (Fremont, Neb.) flirted with a triple-double of his own (10 points, six assists, and seven rebounds) to add to a sizzling field goal afternoon that saw the Maroon hit at a better than 60 percent clip.

Morningside took off on a 14-0 run early in the second half to break away from what had been a tightly-contested conference battle up to that point. They increased their advantage to as much as 17 before DU answered late to cut it to as little as seven before the final margin ended at eight.

Sykes' squad is back in action Wednesday, Nov. 20. They travel to Doane University's George and Sally Haddix Athletic and Recreation Center in Crete, Neb., for an 8 p.m. start.