Mt. Mercy Men's Basketball

Mount Mercy men fall at Clarke

DUBUQUE - The Mount Mercy men's basketball team lost to Clarke, 88-78,  in a Heart of America Conference game in Dubuque Thursday night.

Dennis McKinney led the Mustangs (5-4, 2-3) with 28 points, five  rebounds, four assists, three steals and two assists. He made five  3-pointers.

Davion Watson contributed 14 points and seven rebounds for Mount  Mercy. RoyShawn Webb scored 10 points.

Nick Marshall scored 22 points and Darius Lasley had 21 points for  Clarke (5-5, 3-3).

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Mustangs respond against Grand View

The Mount Mercy Mustangs did a little soul-searching during halftime against Grand View Monday night.

The Mustangs, coming off a 30-point loss at Graceland, played poorly during the first half against Grand View Monday with numerous lapses on defense and little intensity.

"We just had to toughen up," said junior Dennis McKinney. "Davion Watson, one of our seniors, talked to us and we finished it by saying,  'If we want to play in March, we can't play like we did in the first  half tonight.'"

Mount Mercy, determined to play better, owned the second half and collected an 80-65 victory over the Vikings in a Heart of America Conference game at the Hennessey Recreation Center.

The Mustangs went on a 17-0 run early in the second half for a 59-50  lead, with stiffer defense fueling the attack, and it ultimately turned into a 34-6 surge for a 20-point advantage at 76-56 with 5:34  left in the game.

Mount Mercy completely dominated Grand View during that 13-minute stretch with some of its best basketball of the season.

Coach Aaron Jennings said they talked about defense at halftime. "Grand View was carving us up in the first half," he said. "Just open shot after open shot after open shot."

It was all about effort, said Jennings.

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Graceland pounds Mustangs by 30

LAMONI - The Mount Mercy men's basketball team fell behind by 34 points Tuesday night and lost to Graceland, 107-77, in a Heart of America Conference game in Lamoni.

The setback dropped the Mustangs to 4-3 overall and 1-2 in the league. Graceland squared its marks at 4-4 overall and 2-2 in the conference.

Tyler Kelley and Streeter McIlravy came off the bench to lead Mount Mercy with 15 points apiece. Dennis McKinney collected 13 points and nine rebounds. Keishun Thomas scored 10 points.

Virgil Walker tossed in 23 points to lead five Graceland players in double figures. The hosts hit 43 of 68 shots for 63.2 percent.

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No. 9 Benedictine tops Mount Mercy

The Mount Mercy men's basketball team lost to ninth-ranked Benedictine, 76-64, in a Heart of America Conference game Saturday at the Hennessey Recreation Center.

Benedictine raised its records to 3-5 overall and 2-1 in the league. Mount Mercy fell to 4-2 overall and 1-1 in the conference.

Davion Watson collected a double-double for the Mustangs with 14 points and 10 rebounds. He also had five assists. Bailey Basala also scored 14 points and Dennis McKinney had 12.

Jayden Temme popped in 20 points for Benedictine. The visitors outscored Mount Mercy by 11 points at the foul line, 16-5, in the 12-point victory.

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