The Georgetown Tigers advanced to the finals of the Mid-South Conference Tournament after handing the University of the Cumberlands an 80-68 loss. The Tigers improved to a 25-6 overall record after winning the regular season title with a 7-3 conference record.
Now, the No. 1 seeded Tigers will face the third seed Campbellsville University in Saturday’s championship game at 4:00 p.m. at the Southeast Exposition Center in Pikeville, Ky.
Georgetown jumped out to an early 9-0 start against the Cumberlands, but both teams struggled through the first half committing 12 and 14 turnovers respectively as each vied for position. The Tigers shot a mere 37.9 percent from the field, and went into the locker room down 33-35.
The second half saw the Tigers more aggressive from the field, hitting 15-of-28 for a much improved 53.6 field goal percentage. Georgetown battled in the paint to out rebound the Patriots 41 to 25, pulling down 26 defensive boards. The Tigers put up a season-best show from the charity stripe, hitting 25-of-30 from the line for 83.3 percent.
Junior forward Mark Surgalski (6-8, 235, Ashland, Ky.) netted his 1000th point in the effort to join the list of Georgetown scoring elite. Surgalski needed 18 points going into the contest and came away with exactly that, becoming the 45th member of the Georgetown 1,000 Point Club.
He scored his 1000th point, making the second of two free throws with 1:10 left in regulation. Entering the 2005-06 campaign Surgalski had racked up 600 points during his freshman and sophomore seasons. Surgalski fittingly finished the game as the team’s leading scorer netting the 18 points while also pulling down seven rebounds and snagging four steals.
Three more Tigers finished in double-figures with junior guard Robert Cox (6-5, 190, Macon, Ga.) adding 17 and junior guard Craig Schoen (5-11, 175, Elizabeth, Ind.) alongside freshman forward Eric Fields (6-8, 230, London, Ky.) each scoring 15. Fields led all rebounders with eight on the day.
The championship game will mark the third meeting between Georgetown and Campbellsville. GC dropped both regular season games to CU, at home (Jan. 21st) 56-62 and on the road (Feb. 11th) 64-68. Georgetown is ranked #11 in the NAIA Top 25, while Campbellsville (25-5, 5-5 Mid-South) checks in at #22.
The game will be Campbellsville’s first trip to the Mid-South Conference championship round, while Georgetown will be striving for it’s seventh MSC title.
Posted at 08:18 pm by georgetown
