Shattered backboard ends IWC game early

HANNIBAL, MO. ? The Iowa Wesleyan College men's basketball team opened its season Tuesday night against Hannibal-LaGrange (Mo.) University, but didn't get much further than that.Not even five minutes counted down on the clock before IWC?s Jeff Harper shattered a backboard and the game was soon suspended to be played at a later date.

The game between the Tigers and Trojans was halted with 15:44 left in the first half and IWC leading 12-5 after Harper shattered the backboard on a one-handed, fast-break dunk.

Coaches and officials discussed their options, and the decision reached was that repairs could not be made in a timely fashion and the game would be suspended and postponed to a later date.

The contest will pick up at the point where the two teams left off in the game.

Before the unexpected development, Wesleyan (ranked 15th in the NAIA Division II Preseason Top 25 Coaches' Poll) got off to a good start.

The Tigers gave up the game?s initial basket, but went on to outscore the Trojans 12-3.

For IWC, Davis Warner scored eight points, Bruce Brooks scored two and Jon Umoren added two assists as IWC shot five-for-six from the field in the first five minutes.

The Tigers also played solid defense, getting several baskets in transition off of missed shots by the Trojans.

Hannibal-LaGrange shot two-for-five in early going with Drew Jefferson scoring three points and Chris Smith adding two.

The Tigers will try again to get a full game under their belts on Friday when they face Graceland University at 6 p.m. in Cedar Rapids as part of the Mt. Mercy University Bosch Financial Shootout.

The women also start their season on Friday. IWC will play against Briar Cliff University at the Grand View Shootout in Des Moines.