Men’s Basketball Drops Midweek Home Matchup to Ravens

BALDWIN CITY - Coming off two big, last-second road wins, Baker men's basketball was tripped up in its home conference matchup against Benedictine, falling to the Ravens, 67-62, on Wednesday night in the Collins Center.

A low-scoring first half saw the Ravens take a three-point lead into the halftime locker room and remain in front for all of the second half, despite a late charge from the Wildcats in the final stages of the game.

Both teams made exactly eight 3-pointers and shot around 40 percent from the floor, with Benedictine carrying a slightly better overall rate at 25-for-58, while BU went 23-for-60. Baker earned a narrow edge on the glass, outrebounding BC, 40-38.

Cam Jones posted his third double-double of the season, finishing with a team-high 17 points and 12 rebounds. Jimmy Dorsey accounted for half of BU's made 3-pointers in the game and totaled 14 points and six rebounds. Lucas Lyons chipped in nine points as well in a balanced scoring night for the Baker starters.

After a three-game absence from their home floor, it was a sluggish start for the Wildcats - and the game as a whole - as the first 10 minutes saw just a combined 25 points scored, with the Ravens leading 13-12 at the second media timeout.

Luke McDonald hit a tough jumper at the elbow and Lucas Lyons followed with a big shot from downtown to pull the Wildcats back in it after BC stretched its lead out to seven. Later in the half, McDonald found Lyons underneath the hoop for an easy bucket.

Three straight free throws from Jones closed out the half for the Wildcats as they went into the break trailing the Ravens by three at 27-24.

In the second half, Dorsey matched a quick three from BC with a triple of his own on Baker's first possession, the first of three for him in the latter frame. A jumper from Jones made it a one-point ballgame, but the Ravens would go on a 12-4 run to build their lead back out to 42-33.

A couple more baskets from Jones kept BU close before another triple by Dorsey brought the hosts within three with just over 10 minutes remaining. Myles Tucker splashed in a three and Alex Gunnels unleashed back-to-back treys to cut the deficit to 57-53 with 3:50 left to play.

The Ravens followed with a devastating three to spoil the rally, but Dorsey's final one made it a two-point game going into the final minutes of the night. The Wildcats remained within a possession or two the rest of the way, but couldn't connect on a couple of key shots as Benedictine held on to survive the intense conference showdown.

Up next, Baker will turn around and host its Senior Day with a matchup against Park on Saturday, Feb. 14, at 4 p.m. in the Collins Center. The Senior Day ceremony will take place between the men's and women's games.

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