WAUKESHA, Wis. - The Rockford University men's basketball team lost its first game of the season on Friday night to Carroll University 76-67. Rockford struggled to find its rhythm offensively for much of the afternoon. The Regents shot just 30% (6-for-20) from long beyond the arc and only 50% from the free throw line (11-of-22). Defensively Rockford did a good job limiting the number of shot attempts for Carroll; however, the game ultimately came down to Pioneers' ability to connect on 50% its field goal attempts including 40% from 3-point range.
Neither team lit the nets on fire on the opening minutes as there were only a combined seven made baskets in the first five minutes of the game. Junior Zach Wallace (Rockford, Ill.) led the Regents early on scoring four of his team's first six points as Rockford trailed 9-6 at the 15 minute mark. However, it was the Pioneers who would catch fire over the next four minutes as they went on an 11-3 run including scoring nine straight to end the run.
Although Rockford was never able to cut substantially into the Pioneer lead for the remainder of the half, it was the Regents bench that kept them in the game. The Regents reserves scored 13 of Rockford's 24 first half points as they connected on 5-of-10 shot attempts and went 3-of-4 at the free throw line. The top two performances came from the freshmen duo of Logan Spatz (League City, Tex.) and Tony Diemer (Rockford, Ill.). Spatz led Rockford with 6 points on a perfect 2-for-2 shooting while Diemer scored 5 points and hauled in 3 rebounds as the Regents entered halftime trailing 37-24.
The second half got off to a much better start for the Regents as they connected on three of their first four shots. Ross Arteaga (Mendota, Ill.) began the half by draining a three-pointer while Kenny Parks (Mascoutah, Ill.) and Zach Wallace followed by connecting on back-to-back layups to pull Rockford within 8 points.
However, the momentum quickly swung back in Carroll's favor as the Regents were called for technical foul that helped spur the Pioneers on a 6-0 run. Over the next five minutes Carroll began to seize control of the game as it extended its lead to a game-high 16 points leading 50-34.
Rockford was unable to get the deficit back under 10 points until late in the game when it mounted one final comeback attempt. Senior John O'Bryan (Richmond, Ky.) drilled a three-point basket with just over two minutes remaining to pull the Regents back within 9 points. One possession later, Tony Diemer connected on a layup making it just a 7-point game at 70-63. Unfortunately, Rockford would not get any closer as Carroll was able to make its free throws down the stretch en route to the 76-67 win.
The Regents finished with a trio of players in double-figures on Friday night. Senior Michael Murray (Princeton, Ill.) recorded his second double-double of the season and led all scorers with 18 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocks and 1 steal. Zach Wallace finished with 12 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 block. Freshman Tony Diemer had a career-high 13 points, 8 rebounds and 3 assists.
The RU men's basketball team returns to action on Saturday, November 21 against Luther College. Tip-off is set for 2:00 p.m. in Waukesha, Wis.
