Porter scores 17, Ihnen 16 to help Liberty beat Kansas St. 69-67 in Paradise Jam semis

SAINT THOMAS, Virgin Islands -- — Colin Porter scored 17 points, Isaiah Ihnen added 16 on 7-of-12 shooting Sunday night and Liberty held off Kansas State for a 69-67 win in the semifinals of the Paradise Jam.

Kaden Metheny scored 13 points for the Flames. Zach Cleveland scored two points on 0-of-8 shooting but finished with nine rebounds and eight assists.

Brendan Hausen hit a jumper and Achor Achor scored in the paint to give Kansas State (4-2) a 63-62 lead with 2:31 to play. Porter answered with a 3-pointer 16 seconds later and Liberty led the rest of the way.

Owen Aquino hit two free throws to give the Flames a four-point lead with 50 seconds remaining and Coleman Hawkins scored in the lane to cut it to 67-65 just eight seconds later. After Metheny missed a layup on the other end, Dug McDaniel missed a clean look at a 3-point shot from the left wing, David N’Guessan missed a putback attempt and McDaniel missed a heave from 3-point range at the buzzer.

Hausen scored 14 points and Hawkins added 11 for Kansas State. N’Guessan and Achor scored 10 points apiece.

Liberty (6-1) plays McNeese in the championship, and the Wildcats take on Longwood in the third-place game, on Monday.

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