Porter sinks Dons, NL stays unbeaten

CEDAR RAPIDS - No. 4 New London's unbeaten season was in danger on Saturday in their Wells Fargo Advisors shootout game against Don Bosco. The Dons led the Tigers 51-50 with time winding down in the fourth quarter, but Mason Porter drove to the basket and hit a layup plus the foul with 14 seconds remaining. Porter hit the free throw and the Tiger defense held, giving NL a 53-51 win.

New London had a strong first half, leading 15-10 after the first quarter and 29-21 at halftime, helped out by a 12-point first half for Grant Swanson. The Tigers did take a major setback, however, when Isaac McSorley, the biggest outside threat on the team, went down with a knee injury.

McSorley's absense was felt in the second half. Don Bosco cut the lead to 40-36 after three quarters and took tkhe lead on a Lewis Havel free throw with 1:04 left. Porter's and-one stole the lead back and gave New London their 15th win in 15 tries.

Swanson finished the day with 16 points to lead the team. Keontae Luckett had 11 points and nine assists, and Porter finished with 11 points and nine rebounds.

Darius Whaley scored six points in the win. Jalen Birdsell had five points, and McSorley ended the night with four.

New London will continue with a tough stretch in the schedule on Tuesday, Jan. 22. A possibly short-handed Tiger team will travel to Notre Dame in a marquee SEISC South Division matchup.