DUBUQUE, Iowa - The Coe College men's basketball team continued its magical run through the A-R-C Tournament on Saturday evening, defeating fourth-seeded Loras College 93-86 in the championship game to earn the program's first-ever conference tournament title. Coe, which returns to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1976, is the first six-seed to win the conference tournament title since 2017. The game was high-paced and high scoring, with the teams combining to shoot over 56 percent throughout. Coe and Loras were neck and neck in the first few minutes of the contest, exchanging a handful of short spurts. The Kohawks took the first substantial lead of the game midway through the first, opening up a 29-22 lead with 9:09 left in the period. The hosts slowly chipped away at Coe's advantage before the end of the half, tying the game at 47 with 1:42 remaining. The Kohawks restored the lead just before the half, getting a layup from
John Steffen to take a 49-47 lead into the locker room. Coe continued to play well in the second, extending its advantage to 13 midway through the frame. The Duhawks stormed back late in the period, erasing a double-digit deficit in less than five minutes of game time. Coe saw its lead cut to just one point with under two minutes to play but
Cael Schmitt hit one of the biggest shots of the season on the following possession, knocking down a go-ahead jumper to put Coe on top for good.
TJ Schnurr's scorching-hot close to the season continued in the title game, scoring a game and career-high 36 points while adding eight boards and three assists. The performance is the most accurate shooting effort in Coe's history as the junior shot 14-of-15 from the field to post a new school-record 93 percent overall. Schmitt played the role of supporting actor on the night, adding 19 points while dishing out four dimes. Steffen and
Greg Hall were the final two Kohawks into the double digits, finishing the game with 12 and 10 points respectively. The win, which is Coe's fifth in a row, moves the team to 16-12 overall while Loras ends the year with a 17-11 record.
GAME FACTS:
#6 COE 93 - #4 LORAS 86
- Schnurr opened the night in the scoring mood, kicking the game off with a 3 just over 10 seconds in. Loras owned the next few minutes, taking advantage of the home crowd to outscore Coe 11-3. The Kohawks showed no signs of nerves, responding right away with nine answered points that included four points from Tyson Gage and a 3 from Hall. The Duhawks quickly paused the run with a triple, slicing the lead to one Coe answered again with an 8-2 run to regain a 23-16 advantage.
- The teams settled in during the next few minutes, trading blows over a four-minute stretch as Coe led 33-26 with 6:44 left in the half. Loras quickly closed the gap before the three-minute mark of the half, outscoring Coe 10-5 to pull within two at 38-36. The Kohawks and Duhawks went toe-to-toe over the remaining three minutes of the first half, scoring 11 points each but the late layup from Steffen meant Coe was ahead at the break.
- Loras started the second half well, answering Coe's period-opening bucket with six-straight points to take a 53-51 lead. The Kohawks dominated the next 3:52, ripping off a 14-2 run to take a 10-point lead. Schnurr and Schmitt were the catalysts of the spurt, scoring six and four points while Coe hit all seven of its shots overall. The hosts answered to stay in the game, getting an immediate 7-3 spurt to get back within six points with 11:35 to play.
- The Kohawks put together another short run to continue their momentum, scoring seven unanswered points to take its largest lead of the game at 75-62. Schnurr began the run with a 3 and later capped it off with an emphatic one-handed slam after Bennett Sherry came up with a steal at midcourt. Loras cut the deficit to single digits less than three minutes later, using an 11-4 run to make it 79-73 with 6:55 to play. The Duhawk run stayed constant over the next five-plus minutes, using the momentum to outscore Coe 13-6 while grabbing an 86-85 lead. Schmitt came up huge on Coe's next possession, hitting a go-ahead jumper to put his team on top for good. The defense locked up the win on the next possession, playing solid defense prior to drawing a charge on the Duhawks.
Up next: Coe will find out its opponent and destination for the opening round of the NCAA Tournament during the NCAA selection show which takes place Monday, February 27 at 12 PM.
#KohawkNation
Visit https://kohawkathletics.com/ for complete coverage of Coe College Athletics
Like Coe College Athletics on Facebook
Follow @CoeAthletics on Twitter
Follow @CoeAthletics on Instagram
Coe Athletics Mobile App - Android | iPhone
