Men's Basketball

MOUNT PLEASANT, Iowa -- Mount Mercy's Paul Gavin was named Midwest Collegiate Conference Coach of the Year and senior forward Keith Kuenstling was a first-team all-conference selection when the MCC released its men's basketball honors today.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The NAIA officially released the 32-team field for the 19th Annual Division II Men's Basketball National Championship today, but unfortunately for Mount Mercy, the Mustangs will not be going to Branson next week.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- Sixth-seeded William Penn built an 18-point second-half lead, then held on to defeat third-seeded Mount Mercy, 88-85, in the quarterfinals of the 2010 Midwest Collegiate Conference Men's Basketball Tournament on Wednesday at Hennessey Recreation Center.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Mount Mercy ended the regular season with five straight wins, and that winning streak has the Mustangs on the outer edge of the NAIA Division II top 25 poll in the final ranking of the year.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- For the second time in as many weeks, Mustang senior forward Keith Kuenstling has been named the Midwest Collegiate Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Week for Feb. 22.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- After Mount Mercy fell behind by four points early in the second half, the Mustangs broke open a close contest and wiped out Ashford, 91-73, in a Midwest Collegiate Conference men's basketball regular season finale on Seniors Day Saturday at Hennessey Recreation Center.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- After opening up an early 17-point lead, the Mount Mercy men's basketball team found itself trailing at the break and in need of a spark. Luckily, junior point guard James Henderson answered the call.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- Mount Mercy senior forward Keith Kuenstling, who led the Mustangs to a pair of wins, has been named the Midwest Collegiate Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Week for Feb. 15.

OSKALOOSA, Iowa -- It was a two possession game with six minutes to go when Mount Mercy erupted for 18 of the next 19 points to rout William Penn, 93-70, in Midwest Collegiate Conference men's basketball at Penn Gymnasium on Saturday.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- Led by seniors Keith Kuenstling and Jake Carey, Mount Mercy cruised past Clarke, 97-65, in a Midwest Collegiate Conference men's basketball game Wednesday at Hennessey Recreation Center.

MOUNT PLEASANT, Iowa -- Led by senior forward Keith Kuenstling and junior forward Josh Watznauer, Mount Mercy outscored Iowa Wesleyan, 57-26, in the paint and pounded the Tigers, 97-71, in Midwest Collegiate Conference men's basketball on Saturday at Ruble Arena.

LA CROSSE, Wis. -- Viterbo (Wis.) came into Wednesday night's ball game as the lowest scoring team in the Midwest Collegiate Conference this season, but don't tell the Mount Mercy men's basketball team that.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- Senior guard Jake Carey rained in six 3-pointers and scored a game-high 26 points to lead the Mount Mercy men's basketball team to a 118-69 rout of East-West (Ill.) in a non-conference contest on Saturday at Hennessey Recreation Center.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- The Mount Mercy defense didn't have an answer for Mike Kennedy, who poured in a game-high 37 points to lead St. Ambrose over the Mustangs, 85-72, in Midwest Collegiate Conference men's basketball on Thursday at Hennessey Recreation Center.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- Mount Mercy's bench outscored Waldorf's reserves, 42-19, as the Mustangs snapped a three-game losing streak with an 89-75 victory over the Warriors in Midwest Collegiate Conference men's basketball on Tuesday at Hennessey Recreation Center.

CLINTON, Iowa -- Mount Mercy rebounded from a two-point halftime deficit to take a six-point lead with seven minutes to go in the game, but Ashford controlled the stretch run and downed the Mustangs, 76-70, in Midwest Collegiate Conference men's basketball on Saturday at Kehl Arena.

DES MOINES, Iowa -- Mount Mercy saw an eight-point second-half lead evaporate and Grand View went on to dominate overtime while handing the Mustangs their second straight loss, 83-72, in Midwest Collegiate Conference men's basketball on Thursday.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- Mount Mercy Head Men's Basketball Coach Paul Gavin will join hosts Scott Unash and Mark Dukes on Monday's edition of The Gym Class at 2:30 p.m. on ESPN Radio 1600AM.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- Ninth-ranked William Penn led by a point at halftime, then put up 56 points after the break to outscore Mount Mercy, 95-85, in a Midwest Collegiate Conference men's basketball showdown on Saturday at Hennessey Recreation Center.

DUBUQUE, Iowa -- The Mount Mercy men's basketball team defeated Clarke, 76-64, on Wednesday at the Kehl Center to move into a tie for first place in the Midwest Collegiate Conference standings.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Mount Mercy is off to the best start in school history, and it's starting to get the attention of the nation's coaches. The Mustangs, winners of five straight and eight of their last nine games, are 34th in this week's NAIA Division II Men's Basketball Coaches' Top 25 Poll.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- The late Denny Thiessen influenced hundreds if not thousands of high school basketball players and coaches during his incredible run as the head coach at Bettendorf, Cedar Rapids Prairie and Iowa City High high schools.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- After trailing by six points early in the contest, Mount Mercy turned things around in a hurry and blasted Iowa Wesleyan, 97-53, in Midwest Collegiate Conference men's basketball on Saturday at Hennessey Recreation Center.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- Senior guard Jake Carey scored 17 points and senior forward Keith Kuenstling added 16 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Mount Mercy men's basketball team to an 84-67 victory over Viterbo (Wis.) in Midwest Collegiate Conference action on Wednesday at Hennessey Recreation Center.

MIAMI, Fla. -- Six Mustangs reached double figures, leading the Mount Mercy men's basketball team to its fifth win in six games, an 87-74 victory over Johnson & Wales (Fla.) on Tuesday at Miami Country Day Arena.

MOUNT VERNON, Iowa -- Mount Mercy rebounded from a 13-point deficit in the first half to hand Cornell its first loss in seven outings, 70-61, in non-conference men's basketball on Friday at the Small Multi-Sport Center.

DAVENPORT, Iowa -- The Mount Mercy men's basketball team led St. Ambrose by five points at the break, but went ice cold from 3-point range in the second half and suffered a 70-66 defeat to the Bees in Midwest Collegiate Conference play on Saturday at Lee Lohman Arena.

FOREST CITY, Iowa -- Senior forward Keith Kuenstling poured in 25 points and junior point guard James Henderson added 18 as Mount Mercy beat Waldorf, 99-89, in a Midwest Collegiate Conference men's basketball opener on Wednesday at Hanson Fieldhouse.

MENOMONIE, Wis. -- Junior guard James Henderson poured in a season-high 24 points in Sunday's championship game to lead the Mount Mercy men's basketball team to an 87-84 overtime victory over host Wisconsin-Stout at the Quality Inn & Suites Turkey Shootout at Johnson Fieldhouse.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- The Mount Mercy men's basketball team looks to continue its hot start this weekend at the Quality Inn & Suites Turkey Shootout, and you can follow all the action online by visiting Wisconsin-Stout's official tournament Web site.

MOUNT PLEASANT, Iowa -- The Mount Mercy men's basketball team shot 58.4 percent from the field and had six players reach double figures in a 115-39 rout of Logan (Mo.) on Saturday during the final day of the Iowa Wesleyan Kiwanis Classic at Ruble Arena.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- The Mount Mercy men's basketball team rebounded from an early double-digit deficit to snap a four-game losing streak against Coe and remain unbeaten with a 76-64 road victory over the Kohawks on Tuesday at Eby Fieldhouse.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- The Mount Mercy men's basketball team led by as many as 14 points late in the first half, but needed to hold off Culver-Stockton (Mo.) down the stretch to defeat the Wildcats, 77-69, on Friday at Hennessey Recreation Center.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- Dominant post play on back-to-back days made Mount Mercy the only team to go undefeated at the Bosch Financial Shootout, hosted this weekend by the Mustangs at Hennessey Recreation Center.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- Mount Mercy had five players in double figures and led from start to finish while opening the 2009-10 season with a 92-47 victory over Crossroads (Minn.) on Sunday at Hennessey Recreation Center.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- The Midwest Collegiate Conference men's basketball coaches have predicted a third-place finish for Mount Mercy this season, according to poll results released this week.