COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- LeTourneau men's basketball came up just short in its regular season finale, falling to Colorado College 75-73 on Sunday afternoon inside Reid Arena.

The YellowJackets (17-8, 12-4 SCAC) nearly overcame a double-digit deficit, outscoring Colorado (12-13, 10-6 SCAC) 7-0 in the final 1:28, but Max Frels corner 3-pointer came up just short at the buzzer.

Teigan Edwards stepped up for an injury-depleted LeTourneau, leading with 18 points, four steals, three boards, and seven assists to just one turnover.

As a team, the Jackets only turned the ball over five times -- while forcing 16 turnovers -- throughout the game.

Branson Lynn supplied 12 points off the bench, while Cooper Smith garnered nine points, six rebounds, and four steals.

The teams traded blows following the opening tip, seeing four lead changes through the first 12:00. 

The Tigers eventually found a rhythm, running off a 10-0 stretch to lead 32-22 with 6:08 remaining in the half.

As the lead hovered around the 10-point mark throughout the second half, LeTourneau would slowly begin to chip away once the clock wound down.

Ryan Kranz hit a 3-pointer at the 1:28 mark to extend the lead to 75-66, but Edwards would make good on a layup and triple, followed by Smith hitting a pair at the free throw line to trim the lead to two.

LeTourneau made back-to-back stops on the defensive end and called a timeout with seven seconds remaining for one final possession, but Frels 3-pointer rimmed out as time expired.

Asher Nofziger led the way for the Tigers, scoring 14 points and grabbing 20 rebounds.

UP NEXT

With the Blue Division title, LeTourneau has secured a bye to the semifinals in the SCAC Tournament, hosted by Hendrix in Conway, Ark. The YellowJackets will face the winner of No. 2 Gold-seeded Concordia Texas and No. 3 Blue-seeded Austin College on Saturday, Feb 28 at 2:00 p.m.

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