Senior Drake Kindsvater goes up for a lay up against UChicago on Jan. 12. (Sam Powers | Managing Photo Editor)

The No. 13 WashU men’s basketball team lost their last University Athletic Association (UAA) game of the regular season to the University of Chicago 76-68 on March 1. With the loss, the Bears move to third in the UAA with a record of 9-5, and they will host Central College in the first round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament on March 7 at 6:40 p.m. in St. Louis.

“It feels good, I think, the body of work, the season we put together, you know, I think there’s a lot to be proud of,” senior Hayden Doyle said. “Obviously, [we] came up short in terms of the conference race, but like you said, it’s one of the best leagues. I think it prepared us really well for March, and so it’s going to be exciting to see what happens tomorrow at the selection show.”

Saturday’s game started off evenly with WashU and UChicago trading leads throughout the first half. With around two minutes left in the first half, the Bears and the Maroons sat tied at 35-35. Three free throws and a layup from UChicago left WashU behind Chicago 40-35 at halftime.

The Bears trailed throughout the entire second half as UChicago’s lead grew and waned. Seven minutes into the half, WashU was down nine points but was able to claw their way back to within just one point of the Maroons with 7:11 left on the clock at 63-62.

However, this would not be enough for a WashU victory. UChicago continued to extend their lead, scoring seven unanswered points in the final minutes of the game. Two free throws by Chicago’s Luke Smith put Chicago up 76-68, where the game would sit at the final buzzer 11 seconds later.

Doyle led WashU in scoring with 20 points and three assists. First-year Connor May, who has been a standout for the Bears during his first season, scored 11 points. Senior Drake Kindsvater led the Bears in rebounds with seven, and Doyle also recorded five rebounds.

“He’s our leader and has a lot on his shoulders,” Head Coach Pat Juckem said about Doyle’s performance. “He’s a two-way player … [You’ve] got to be able to do it on both ends, get a defense. So, you know, he’s playing like a senior … He’s a coach on the floor at this stage of his career.”

WashU ended the game 43.5% from the field, making 27 of 62 shots and 70% from the free throw line — consistent with WashU’s field goal and free throw percentages this season of 47.6 and 69.9, respectively. The Bears struggled from behind the arc, making seven of 23 attempts, 9% less efficient than the Bears’ average three-point efficiency.

WashU dominated UChicago on second-chance points, tallying 13 to the Maroon’s eight. While early this season the Bears struggled with second-chance points, these points have become a strength for WashU during the second half of their UAA season, according to Doyle. 

“It’s just been more of a commitment as a team,” Doyle said. “It’s too late in the season to be one-on-one, two-and-two rebounding, where you’re just kind of hitting each other, being super physical. Because when we were struggling in the middle of conference play, that was honestly the primary reason. And so it’s just like, you know, if we don’t rebound, we won’t win. And when you kind of put it like that, we have no choice. [We’ve] got to rebound. ”

Juckem credited the growth of both May and other younger players to the Bears’ success throughout the season. May has been able to transition well from high school basketball to collegiate play and is who Juckem described as both a versatile player and “an awesome teammate.” WashU’s depth also shined, with the Bears leading UChicago in bench points with 24 compared to 14.

“I’d say all of our young players have progressed a ton this year, and we’ve seen that in our practices and our competitive segments, and [we’re] certainly excited for the future with our young players and their development,” Juckem said. “But Connor was ready to go from the beginning.”

On March 3, WashU will play Central in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The winner of that matchup will face off against either Denison University or Franklin College on March 8 at 6:40 p.m.

Going into March Madness, the Bears are not looking for change but instead, to follow their processes that have taken them to this point in the season, according to Doyle.

“[We want to continue] to just pour into our process,” Doyle said. “And I think a lot if it is just [that] the process takes away the pressure because you trust in your process. Especially in the tournament, it’s high-stress, emotional, intense games, so [we need to] just rely on our preparation.”