The Southwest Minnesota State wheelchair basketball team went 1-4 in the College Conference Tournament in Champaign, Ill. over the weekend. The Mustangs are 9-5 overall this season.
"I'm real pleased with the kids' effort this weekend,"?SMSU head coach Lew Shaver said. "Obviously it was a long trip for us, a long bus ride, and that was a tough circumstance to be in."
Despite 21 points from Jake Williams and 16 points and 15 rebounds from Savoy Brown, SMSU fell 75-52 in its first game against Alabama on Friday. Brown, along with Kyle Timmerman, accounted for 29 of the Mustangs' 55 rebounds.
On Saturday, SMSU came out on the winning end, defeating Edinboro (Pa.) 60-48. Williams continued his hot shooting with 24 points, and Timmerman had 13 rebounds and eight assists in the victory. Brown had another double-double with 18 points, 12 rebounds.
Later in the day, the Mustangs fell 79-53 to host Illinois. Williams went 11-for-18, including 2-for-5 from three-point range to finish with 24. In 40 minutes, Timmerman had 17 points, eight rebounds, four assists and four steals.
In its final game on Saturday, Texas-Arlington edged SMSU in a 59-43 contest. Williams scored 20 points and Brown added 15. No other Mustang scored more than four points in the game.
In its final game of the tournament on Sunday, SMSU lost 56-38 in a rematch against Alabama. Brown led the Mustangs with 14 points, and David Nelson chipped in with seven points. Timmerman had eight assists and five steals in the loss.
Shaver said he was satisfied with his team's ball control, staying under 10 turnovers in the final four games. Where SMSU looks to improve is on the offensive end.
"Finishing our shots was the only major issue for us this weekend,"?Shaver said. "The other teams, they did that better than we did and that's the reason they beat us. We need to become better shooters, but I'm real pleased with the effort from our group.
"We're only six deep right now, so that speaks to the effort that the kids put forth."
The Mustangs return to action on Feb. 11, heading to the University of Missouri.