The Valparaiso Crusaders battled back in the second half to push past the Wright State Crusaders 62-54 on Tuesday night to win the Horizon League Tournament and head to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2004.
Valparaiso wins 2013 Horizon League basketball tournament: Crusaders heading to the big dance
The Valparaiso Crusaders were able to overcome a wild second half against the Wright State Crusaders and won the Horizon League Tournament and send Valparaiso to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2004.
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Early on, it seemed like the Crusaders were well on their way to March Madness with the auto-bid, but things started to unravel in the second half to make the game interesting again.
The Crusaders entered the first half with an 11-point lead and a rabid home base crowd ready to scream the Raiders out of the building, but the Raiders didn’t back down easily. The Raiders went on a 20-6 run to open up the second half and Valparaiso continued to turn the ball away at inopportune times as Wright State took a lead. The Crusaders normally average 14 turnovers per game but struggled with ball control against the Raiders, turning it over a season-high 24 times.
But Crusaders guard Erik Buggs took over when the rest of his team was struggling, leading all scorers with 22 points -- a majority of them scored in the second half. He helped spark a 14-0 run to close out the game and the Crusaders were able to finally put away a very pesky Wright State squad.
The Raiders' bench kept them in the game, led by guard Reggie Arceneaux with 14 points. Wright State had a solid showing from its supporting cast, with 35 of the 50 points coming off of the bench. In the end, it wasn't enough for the Raiders to pull the upset.
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