Eureka Rally Falls Short on Senior Day, 84-82

EUREKA, Ill. – The Eureka College men's basketball team overcame a 15-point second-half deficit and pulled even in the final minute of Saturday's St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game against Iowa Wesleyan, but the Tigers made two foul shots with :03.4 seconds left to secure an 84-82 win over the Red Devils at Christine Bonati Bollwinkle Arena.

After a 3-point play from CJ Singletary pushed the Tigers to a 57-42 lead with 15:35 left in the game, Eureka went to work on closing the gap. Sophomore guard Shea Feehan (Peoria, Ill./Notre Dame H.S.) scored 12 consecutive points for the Red Devils, including three straight 3-pointers, to pull EC within 71-65 with 7:35 left.

Another Feehan bucket brought EC within a single point, 75-74, at the 5:13 mark, but IWU bounced back with five unanswered points to lead 80-74. The Red Devils ultimately got even at 82-82 when junior guard Kendall Davis (Peoria, Ill./Limestone H.S./Illinois Central) scored five in a row, including a jumper that knotted the score at 82-82 with 32 seconds left.

IWU wasted the clock on the ensuing trip and regained the lead when Steven Soukup was fouled and converted two foul shots with :03.4 seconds left. The Red Devils were unable to get a clean look at the goal in the final seconds.

The Tigers controlled much of the first half, sprinting to a 17-6 lead less than six minutes into the game. The Red Devils pulled within six as late as the 4:40 mark before halftime, but IWU carried a 44-34 advantage into the locker room.

Feehan finished with 37 points to end his sophomore season with 641 points, second-most in single-season Eureka history and 12 points shy of equaling Chris Peterson's 1993-94 record of 653.

Feehan ended the campaign with 26.7 points per game to break the previous single-season Eureka scoring average record of 22.1 set by Feehan and his brother Sam last season. Feehan will enter his junior campaign with 928 career points, 72 shy of becoming Eureka's first 1,000-point scorer since Mark Lessen in 2013-14.

Davis scored seven points for the Red Devils, ending his first season in a Eureka uniform ranked 10th on Eureka's single-season scoring list with 568 points.

Eureka senior Nate Bell (Peoria, Ill./Notre Dame H.S.) made his first career start, scoring nine points in his final collegiate contest. Parker Gibson (Pontiac, Ill./Pontiac H.S./St. John's Northwest Military Academy) hauled down five rebounds in his 98th and final game for the Red Devils.

Eureka finished the season 13-12 overall, the Red Devils' first winning campaign since 2012-13.