PALATINE, Ill. – There wasn't much more that Connor Miklasz (Mt. Prospect, Ill., Hersey) could have done on Wednesday night.  The freshman point guard posted career-highs of 32 points and ten assists, but it wasn't enough as the Harper College men's basketball team dropped a 98-85 decision to Madison College.
 
Miklasz drilled eight three-pointers and made 12 of 16 shots overall as Harper (9-20, 3-10 N4C) shot 55% (33 of 60) from the floor.  The loss, however, erased any possibility of the Hawks claiming the #4 seed in the Region IV Tournament and hosting a first round game.  Now the best that the Hawks can hope for is a #6 seed.
 
Unfortunately for Harper, Garrett Borgrud of Madison (9-18, 6-7) was every bit as good as Miklasz.  The 6-foot-9 center was unstoppable down low, pouring in 42 points while also pulling down 13 rebounds, part of a 36-17 rebounding edge for the WolfPack.  Borgrud hit 14 of 20 shots and also converted 14 of 16 from the free throw line.
 
“Give Madison credit, they played really well,” said head coach Anthony Amarino.  “The most important thing is they had a guy that was scoring, and killing us, and they kept going to him.  That's smart basketball.  He scored 42 points, which is the most points we have given up to a player for as long as I've been coaching.”
 
The Hawks whittled a 19 point WolfPack lead down to seven late in the game but couldn't hit the big shot to get any closer.  With Madison ahead 83-65, Miklasz hit three 3-pointers in just over a minute.  On the team's next possession, Miklasz made a beautiful pass in the lane to Jordan Mack (Hillside, Ill., St. Joseph), who finished the play of with a powerful dunk.  After Borgrud answered, Miklasz found Louis Erkins (Schaumburg, Ill., Glenbard South) off an out-of-bounds play for a layup plus the foul.  When Erkins missed the rebound and Madison's Tyler Kowalkowski rebounded, Miklasz snuck in behind and took the ball right out of Kowalkowski's hands for a layup.
 
“We didn't quit, we came back and made a run,” Amarino said.  “Connor was outstanding tonight.  Jordan played his heart out.  We are playing kids in situations that probably shouldn't be there at times.  It is what it is when you have that kind of stuff.”
 
The closest Harper got was at 91-84 with 1:15 left in the game when Miklasz rebounded the ball and attempted to save it from going out of bounds, threw it over his head and downcourt to Erkins, who drove in for a layup.
 
Though they made 13 of 24 from downtown, the Hawks failed to capitalize at the charity stripe, making only 6 of 17 attempts while the WolfPack knocked down 22 of 28.  Madison shot 53% (35 of 65) from the floor and also got 24 points from Alex Cook, 13 from Santiago Silva and 12 from Kowalkowski.
 
Mack chipped in with 19 while Erkins added 14 and three steals.  John Lorenz (Elk Grove Village, Ill., Elk Grove) dished out seven assists as the Hawks had no trouble scoring but the 98 points was the most they have given up in conference play.  Along with Erkins, Bryant Adams (Chicago, Ill., De LaSalle) provided a spark off the bench, drilling two 3-pointers.
 
Harper closes out the regular season with a game at College of DuPage (10-18, 1-11) on Saturday evening.  Tipoff is slated for 7:00 PM.