Men's Basketball | 2/12/2010 12:00:00 AM
Box Score McPherson, Kan. – After a narrow first half, the McPherson College men’s basketball team turned up the defensive intensity, holding the visiting Spires to only 22 points on 7-of-25 shooting en route to a 68-48 victory over the University Of Saint Mary Thursday Night at the McPherson Sport Center.
The win improves the Bulldogs to 19-5 overall and 13-3 in league play, while the preseason league favorite Spires fall to 7-8 in conference and 14-11 overall. McPherson stays within two games of the top spot with three remaining, including a Saturday night matchup against the first place Friends University Falcons.
Senior Charles Moore and sophomore Aaron Frazier paced the McPherson offense with 13 points each, while senior forward Antowine Lamb posted his fourth consecutive double double with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Also scoring in double figures for the Bulldogs was senior guard Marlon Dominique with 12. Dominique led the team with four assists and four steals.
After shooting a dismal 34.3 percent (12-of-35) from the field in the first half, McPherson connected on 48.4 percent (15-of-31) in the second to finish the night at 40.9 percent (27-of-66) shooting. The Bulldogs controlled the glass, out-rebounding the Spires 48-37, including 18 offensive rebounds, which MC converted into 15 points. McPherson’s aggressive man-to-man defense frustrated the Spires into 15 turnovers, while the USM zone only forced seven.
USM was led offensively by sophomore guard Eric Avant with 16, while freshman guard Jeb Greenberg added 15. As a team, Saint Mary shot 30.9 percent from the field, including only 16.7 (4-of-24) from beyond the three-point arc.
Neither side could generate much offensively in the opening 20 minutes. However, McPherson entered the locker room with a six point, 32-26 advantage.
McPherson kicked off the second half with a 10-2 run to push their halftime lead to 16, 44-28. USM would answer with a 7-2 streak of their own behind six points from Avant to cut the deficit to nine, 46-37.
After the surge by Saint Mary, the Bulldogs would turn up the defense and go on a 13-2 run to take a 20 point, 59-39 lead with six minutes left. USM would pull the lead as close as 16, but remained handcuffed by the MC defense.
The Bulldogs pushed their lead out to as much as 21 points, before the final buzzer sounded.
McPherson returns to action Saturday, Feb. 13 as they play host to the Friends University Falcons. The contest marks the final home game for the Bulldogs. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. inside the McPherson Sport Center.
