COON RAPIDS, MINN. - The Madison College men's basketball team made the eight-hour round-trip to the Anoka-Ramsey Community College Tournament over the weekend, only to come back with two very narrow defeats. Friday's tournament opener against the host Golden Rams ended with a 93-86 final, while Saturday's matchup with St. Cloud Technical College needed overtime to decide a winner before the Cyclones took the W with a 104-99 decision. The tournament concluded a four-game road trip to open the 2018-19 regular season.

Game #1: Anoka-Ramsey Community College 93, Madison College 86

Less than eight minutes into the game, Madison College found itself trailing by double-digits after scoring runs of five, six, and seven points by Anoka-Ramsey (1-0). The WolfPack, however, fought back to take the lead with a 14-0 surge to go ahead 23-20 with eight minutes, 28 second left in the half. A brief six-point burst before the half left the 'Pack trailing 38-30 entering the second half. The homestanding Golden Rams maintained some distance throughout the final 20 minutes, except whe Madison cut their deficit to just six points with six minutes remaining and again with two minutes, 49 second to go after a Nathaniel Buss layup made it 81-75. Anoka-Ramsey then iced the game at the free throw line, making 10 of 14 over the final minutes.

Madison College finished with a 44-32 edge in points in the paint and saw their bench outscore the competition's reserves by a 36-17 differential. In their comeback attempt, the 'Pack shot 56.4% from the field in the second half to finish 33 of 74 (44.6%) for the game, which included an 8 for 24 effort beyond the arc. The Golden Rams were plus-11 at the free throw line with 23 makes in 29 attempts compared to the WolfPack's 12 of 22 evening.

Sophomore guard Nathaniel Buss went off for a career-high 31 points, becoming the 16th player in program history to reach that number in a single game. The Verona, Wisconsin, native knocked down 11 of 20 shots, including 4 of 10 three-point attempts, and was perfect on all five of his free throw tries. Buss also registered five rebounds, three assists, and two steals.

The only other player to score in double-figures was fellow second year Sean Suchomel, who tallied 17 points on 7 of 12 shooting. The former Sun Prairie HS athlete struggled at the free throw line with a 3 for 11 effort. Suchomel's statline also included a team-leading five assists and six steals, as well as five boards. In all, nine different players scored for the WolfPack, with freshman Alex Berg setting season-high's with eight points and 11 rebounds.

The win by Anoka-Ramsey moves ARCC to a 5-4 advantage in the all-time series with the WolfPack.

Game #2: St. Cloud Technical College 104, Madison College 99 (OT)

The weekend's second game again saw Madison College fight back from a first half deficit, only this time a late lead was short-lived and the game was ultimately decided in overtime. Taking on the high-scoring Cyclones, fresh off a 110-point performance the night before, the 'Pack trailed 52-40 at the half, matching their largest deficit of the game to that point. It didn't take long in the second half for Madison to eliminate the deficit, using an 11-0 run within the first five minutes to close within a point. By the 12 minute mark the game was all even, and with just over six minutes remaining, the WolfPack owned a 76-69 lead, their biggest of the game. Following a Sean Suchomel free throw with 17 seconds to play and now ahead by a basket, St. Cloud Tech (2-0) forced overtime with a successful lay up in the final seconds. 

In overtime, Madison College took the first lead with a pair of Jalen Addison free throws and an Adam Anhold basket, but a three-pointer at the other end gave the Cyclones the lead, which they would not relinquish in outscoring the 'Pack 17-12 in the extra session.

Addison, a sophomore guard from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, added his name to the list of players to score 30 points in a game at Madison College thanks to an 11 for 18 effort from the field with one 3-pointer and a 7 for 8 performance at the free throw line. The career-high total was accompanied by three rebounds, two assists, and a steal. 

Three other players enjoyed double-figure scoring games, with Sean Suchomel adding a season-high 22 points, Anhold contributing a season-high matching 17 points, and Nathaniel Buss following up his 31-point night on Friday with 11 points. Suchomel and Anhold, who is a Janesville, Wisconsin, native, each secured a team-high nine rebounds. Suchomel and Buss tied for the team lead in assists with six. 

Overall, the WolfPack was 34 of 61 from the floor to post their best shooting percentage of the young season at 55.7%, while also establishing season high marks for free throws made (25), free throws attempted (32), and free throw percentage (78.1%). St. Cloud Tech was able to score advantages in points off turnovers (34-15), second chance points (22-7), and bench points (57-10).  Madison College was tops in interior scoring by a 46-38 margin, but now trail in the all-time series by a 2-1 mark.

Up Next:

Madison College (1-3) will host their 2018 home opener on November 14 when NJCAA Division I Sauk Valley Community College (1-2) comes to H. Douglas Redsten Gymnasium. The Skyhawks own a 25-5 lead in the all-time series dating back to 1988, however, the two teams have split their last four meetings. Game time is at approximately 7:30 p.m.

All home Madison College women's basketball games can be streamed live at MadisonCollege.tv.

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