Box Score
What looked like a potentially special night at the Sportscenter ended bittersweet.
Lonnie Hayes' record-breaking performance of 57 points came in a losing effort, as the No. 12 Panthers fell to Lake Erie, 89-88, Saturday night in the All-American Club Classic.
After trailing by 13 with 3:37, KWC had a chance to win the game after forcing a turnover with 34 seconds left. Hayes got the ball and milked the clock down before driving into the lane.
He was forced to settle for a contested 10-foot jump shot that went off the mark and Lake Erie corralled the rebound. After a missed free throw, a full-court heave from Patrick Neel went off the mark to give the Storm the upset.
"I was trying to do what I had been doing all night for my team and that was finishing," said Hayes, whose point total set a Sportscenter record. "At the same time, there was an open teammate. I probably could have made another decision. But it is what it is now."
That open teammate was freshman Ken-Jah Bosley, who hit the game-winning shot to win the Kentucky
high school state championship at Rupp Arena back in March.
Coach Happy Osborne said he wanted Hayes to try to get in the lane and draw a foul, which he had done all game. Hayes made 26-of-30 free throws.
"What a great performance," Osborne said. "Ken-Jah was sitting in the corner and Ken-Jah wants to shoot that shot, too. I thought (Hayes) fought. He fought, and fought, and fought. I'll give him credit for that.
"There will be a day and a time where this will be a good team, I hope. It's going to be a battle. We've just got to take it and learn from it."
Hayes, a senior, was in tears in the locker room following the game.
"It hurts because I put in so much effort," Hayes said. "My team, they picked me up late. If we would've came out like we finished the game, I feel as though we win that game by double digits against that team."
KWC (1-1) trailed by as much as eight in the first half and couldn't take advantage of 10 forced turnovers and compared to its six. The Panthers also shot 27 first half free throws compared to Lake Erie's four, yet still trailed, 48-46, at halftime.
KWC was never able to get any solid runs together because every time the Panthers would start one, Lake Erie (2-0) would answer. The Storm opened up a seven-point lead early in the second half.
After a 6-0 Panther run to make it a 65-60 game, Lake Erie's Sean Howard buried one of his four 3-pointers to make it 68-60 and effectively silenced a big momentum swing for KWC. He led Lake Erie with 24 points.
The Storm shot 12-of-25 for long range as KWC struggled to shift defensively on several occasions, leaving a man wide open.
"It just basically all comes down to effort," Hayes said of the defensive lapses. "Without effort, you really can't get anything done."
Later in the half, trailing 76-70, Wesleyan got a good look on a 3-point attempt from Bosley than missed and led to a transition alley-oop for Lake Erie.
The Panthers trailed 89-79 with 3:20 left to play and scored the final eight points of the game, but needed at least one more.
"I take all the blame for not trying to play 2-3 zone some in the second half," Osborne said. "I should have played zone. I should have come up with some how, some way to stop them. This one's on me."
Rico Ferguson was the only other KWC player to finish in double figures with 11 points. The Panthers shot 48.9 percent from the field and were just 3-of-14 (21.4 percent) on 3-point attempts.
For the second straight night, the Panthers were without seniors Alex Brown and Donovan Johnson and sophomore Devin Langford, who were suspended indefinitely prior to Friday's game for an undisclosed violation of institutional policy. KWC also got limited minutes from sophomore point guard Lucas Barker, who was nursing a leg injury.
"I think it could have been so uplifting on a win," Osborne said. "We've had a heck of a week. We've just got to keep plugging. At the end of it, they're my kids. I love them. I believe in them. I'm not going to give up on them."
