LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. - Trinity University extended its winning streak to six games over the holiday break by going a perfect 4-0 in non-conference action. The Tigers, who are now 8-3 overall and 2-0 in SCAC play, picked up wins over Howard Payne, SUNYIT, Lake Forest, and Dominican (Ill.).
AROUND THE SCAC
Austin College went 2-1 in games played from December 17 through December 31. The Kangaroos beat former SCAC rivals Hendrix (71-61) and Millsaps (76-65) before dropping a game against former SCAC foe Rhodes (59-43). Austin College dropped a New Year’s Day matinee game to Texas-Dallas 79-60. The ‘Roos are now 3-11 overall and remain 0-4 in league play. Austin College will return to action on Jan. 5 when the ‘Roos travel to SCAC newcomer Centenary.
Centenary went 0-3 in three games over the
holidays, falling to University of Dallas 82-75, Hendrix in
overtime 80-77, and East Texas Baptist 68-64. Against Dallas, the
Gents had three players in double figures, with junior Jonathan
Blount leading all scorers with 30 points. Freshmen Bret Bell had
11 points and sophomore Donovan Williams had a double-double
recording 10 points and 11 rebounds for a season high. Centenary
would return home that week for a nonconference match against
Hendrix. A tightly contested contest, the Warriors got a basket at
the end of regulation to force overtime and eventually win. Blount
had another game high 29 points. After a week off, the Gents
traveled to Marshall for another non-conference game against ETBU.
Falling behind early, the Gents would use a 19-2 run in the second
half to tie the game at 53. Key baskets wouldn’t fall the
Gents way again though, and would end up falling by four. Bell was
the leading scorer for Centenary with 15 points while Blount
followed with 12. Sophomore Caden Cheramie contributed 10 in the
loss. Centenary returns to action on January 5 at home and plays
Austin College at 5 p.m.
Colorado College dropped all three contests during a swing
through Southern California. The Tigers saw their four-game winning
streak come to an end, dropping a 61-59 decision to
Wisconsin-Platteville on Dec. 29. CC got 12 points apiece from its
backcourt duo of junior Ryan Milne and freshman Justin Berardino.
Sophomore forward Chris Lesnansky chipped in with 11 before fouling
out with 6:33 left to play. Lesnansky scored a team-high 22 points,
but for the second day in a row Colorado College's late comeback
attempt fell short. The Tigers trimmed a 64-52 deficit to three
points with 1:58 remaining, but Occidental scored eight of the
final 11 points and held on for an 81-73 victory. Berardino scored
12 of his 18 points in the first half and reached double figures
for the fourth time in the last five games. Milne added 16 points
and four assists. He moved past Rob Hemminger (1984-88) into ninth
place on the program's all-time list with 255 assists and cracked
the top 25 with 830 career points. With seven rebounds, senior
forward Ian Rewoldt became the 23rd player in program to record 400
or more career rebounds. Playing for the third day in a row, the CC
ran out of gas early in the second half and Chapman pulled away for
a 62-48 victory on New Year’s Eve. The Tigers trailed just
36-33 after Lesnansky scored two of his team-high 11 points 3:35
into the second half, but 6:18 expired before the Colorado College
struck again and CU broke the game open with a 12-2 run. Freshman
forward Tyler Jonas scored a career-high eight points, all in a
span of 3:10 early in the first half. CC returns to conference play
this weekend when it visits Southwestern and Trinity on Friday and
Sunday, respectively.
Dallas (7-3, 2-0 SCAC) went 3-1 this reporting period, and
have won seven of their previous eight games. On Monday, Dec. 17,
the Crusaders prevailed 82-75 over Centenary College of Louisiana
at the Maher Athletic Center. Head coach Jarred Samples' squad then
had three road affairs ahead. Dallas edged Millsaps College 62-61
on Wednesday, Dec. 19, behind senior guard Drew Assinesi's
game-winning layup in the bout's waning seconds. The Crusaders fell
at Oglethorpe University 77-64 on Saturday, Dec. 29, and in the
process ended their six-game unbeaten streak. Sunday, Dec. 30, saw
a 79-66 victory for Dallas over Berry College. On tap this week for
Dallas are two SCAC road games -- Trinity (Friday, 8 p.m.);
Southwestern (Saturday, 8 p.m.).
Southwestern had a flurry of games over the break, playing
five games through the holiday stretch. The Pirates went 3-2 during
the break to move to 5-7 on the season and remain at 1-1 in the
SCAC. Prior to the holidays, Southwestern hosted the holiday
tournament and swept both games. SU first defeated SUNYIT 73-61
with a season high 26 points from Travis Kurtz. A more balanced
Pirate attack gave the Pirates a 68-61 win over Howard Payne,
earning Coach Bill Raleigh his 200th career victory. Just before
the break, Southwestern hosted Hardin-Simmons University and
struggled from the field to fall 65-53 to the Cowboys. Refreshed
from some time off the Pirates got back to their winning ways with
a gutsy performance in San Antonio to defeat Dominican University
in double overtime. SU outscored Dominican 15-5 in the final frame
to snag the 86-76 win. Despite a well-played game, Southwestern was
held just out of arms reach of closing the break with a win as they
were narrowly defeated by Lake Forest College 53-50 in San Antonio.
Southwestern returns home to host their first SCAC conference games
of the season, facing Colorado College on Friday and the University
of Dallas on Saturday.
Trinity went 4-0 over the holidays, sweeping the
competition at the Southwestern Classic and the Trinity Classic
Tournaments. The Tigers are currently riding a six-game winning
streak, and are 8-3 overall this season. After a close win (58-54)
to start the week against Howard Payne at the Southwestern Classic,
Trinity exploded for an 82-43 win over SUNYIT. To close out the
2012 calendar year, Trinity beat Lake Forest (68-55) and Dominican
(72-60) at its home tournament. Trinity resumes SCAC play at home
this weekend, hosting the University of Dallas and Colorado College
on Friday and Sunday. The Tigers are currently 2-0 in conference
play, having opened with road wins over Centenary and Austin
College earlier this season.
To view the entire SCAC Hoops Weekly for Week 6,
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