LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. - Colorado College opened its season with impressive wins over Puget Sound and No. 12 Whitworth. Ryan Milne of CC and Jonathan Blount of Centneary made emphatic statements in their opening weeks, dominating the field of play. The Gents started their year 2-1 while Dallas added a 2-0 weekend at their Classic.
AROUND THE SCAC
The Austin College men's basketball team went 1-1 at the University of Dallas Classic over the weekend, bringing the team's overall record to 2-1 on the season. The 'Roos got 26 points and 10 rebounds from Jeremy Swisher as five players reached double digits in an 89-84 win over Ozarks, with Kevin Graham scoring 15, Alan Sullivan scoring 12, and Ransom Okpala and Jordan Hancock each adding 12 in the victory. In the second game of the weekend, the 'Roos rallied from a 22 point halftime deficit but fell just short in a 73-70 loss to St. Joseph's (Brooklyn) despite 25 points from Okpala, including 20 in the second half to key the rally. Sullivan added 13 points and seven boards in the loss.
Centenary opened the 2013-14 season going 2-1 in the span of five days, including wins over intra-city foe LSU-Shreveport and Louisiana College. Jonathan Blount paced the Gents averaging 26.3 points during span. Donovan Williams scored 12 points per game and led the way on the glass with 17 total boards (5.7 rpg). Newcomers Kendall Demouchet and James Sapp ranked right behind Williams with 4.7 and 4.0 rebounds per game. Centenary returns to action on Monday, Dec. 2 at LeTourneau.
Colorado College opened a season with back-to-back victories for the first time since 2009 with wins over the University of Puget Sound and host Whitworth University at the Quality Inn Oakwood Classic last weekend. Senior guard Ryan Milne scored six of his team-high 25 points in overtime to lift the Tigers to a 92-90 victory over Puget Sound on Friday night. Junior forward Russell Clark put CC ahead to stay at 88-86 when he knocked down a jumper for two of his career-high 10 points with 1:41 remaining in the extra session. It marked the first time Colorado College went to overtime in the first game of the season since the 60-57 victory at Air Force to open the 2010-11 campaign. Despite picking up his fourth foul 2:08 into the second half and fouling out with 1:41 to play in regulation, Chris Lesnansky finished with 14 points and grabbed a team-high seven rebounds. The junior forward became the 37th player in program history to record 700 or more career points and finished the game with 707 to climb into sole possession of 36th place on the all-time list. Lesnansky poured in 21 points and Milne sank four free throws in the final 16 seconds to help the Tigers record a 65-60 victory at No. 12 Whitworth on Saturday night. Lesnansky gave CC a 55-45 lead with 6:23 remaining, but the Pirates fought back and cut their deficit to three points with 17 seconds to play. After Milne gave Colorado College a five-point lead with two charity tosses, Whitworth's Kenny Love scored to make the score 63-60 with 10 seconds to play. Milne came through again with eight seconds remaining to seal the victory. Freshman forward Mitch Carter grabbed 10 rebounds to help the Tigers record a 38-30 advantage on the glass. Lesnansky, who finished with six rebounds, climbed into sole possession of 30th place on the program's all-time chart with 352. Milne, who was named the tournament MVP, finished the game with 18 points and 43 for the two contests. He also added 11 assists during the weekend. CC plays its first home contests of the season next Friday and Sunday when Carleton College and Whitworth visit Reid Arena for the 2013 Colorado College Thanksgiving Classic.
The Dallas men's basketball team (3-1) went 2-0 on the week as hosts of the Dallas Classic. On Friday, at the Maher Athletic Center, the Crusaders prevailed 55-52 over St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn). On Saturday, head coach Jarred Samples' squad trekked to a 78-62 victory over University of the Ozarks. Dallas is idle until Thursday, Dec. 5, when they battle Arlington Baptist College on the road at 7 p.m.
Schreiner went 1-1 this week with a home loss to #7 Mary Hardin-Baylor by score of 73-58, but hit the road and and picked up their first win of the seaosn over Hardin-Simmons, 73-72. Schreiner will continue this week with road contest at Concordia in Austin on Tuesday, November 26th. They then will travel to Memphis to take on Rhodes on Friday and conclude the weekend on Sunday in Conway against Hendrix.
Southwestern men's basketball had a busy week of action, playing three games in six days with two being on the road. Despite the tough schedule, the Pirates fared well going 2-1 on the week to improve to 2-2 on the year. On Monday evening Southwestern traveled to Abilene and used a 53-point second half to pull out a 79-75 win over Hardin Simmons. The strong offense continued in Seguin as SU faced Texas Lutheran in a non-conference game on Wednesday. TLU gave the Pirates a scare, but the SU defense forced a turnover with eight seconds left to give SU the 73-71 victory. In their first home game of the season, the Pirates took on St. Edwards University who is in transition to Division I. Southwestern had a chance at the win but couldn't get the bounce they needed as they fell 80-61. SU remains at home to face Mary Hardin-Baylor on Tuesday night before the Thanksgiving break.
Robert Watson Jr. scored a team-high 19 points, including 14 in the first half, to help lead Texas Lutheran to a home-opening 77-63 win over Open Bible College on Monday. The win was the Bulldogs' first season-opening victory since they tipped off the 2009-10 season with a win over Southwestern Kansas. On Wednesday, the Bulldogs battled back from a 12-point deficit with less than seven minutes to go and had a chance to tie the game in the final seconds, but eventually fell 73-71 to Southwestern at home. The Bulldogs forced six turnovers in the game's final seven minutes to scrap their way back into the game. Garrett Wilkins had a chance to tie the game with just seconds left, but a turnover sealed the loss. The Bulldogs finished off their week in high style, grabbing their first road win of the season with a 97-83 victory over Southwestern Adventist. The Bulldogs were, once again, led by Robert Watson Jr., who scored a career-high 25 points while also pulling down eight rebounds and dishing out five assists. TLU shot better than 50 percent from the field while holding the Knights to just 36 percent.
Trinity went 1-1 at the Hoopsville National Invitational over the weekend, defeating Keystone on Friday, then falling to Ohio Wesleyan to finish the tournament on Saturday. Three players averaged in double figure scoring for the weekend, led by Robert Kitzinger's 14.5 points/game. Jonathan Wilt averaged 12.5 points and 7.0 rebounds per game for the Tigers, hitting better than 42% from the field and 90% from the foul line. Trinity beat Keystone 82-67 to extend its winning streak to two games in the early season, but the 64-75 loss to Ohio Wesleyan snapped that streak the next day. The Tigers return to action for a single game on Saturday evening in Belton, Texas, facing off against the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor. Trinity lost a 57-56 overtime game to UMHB last season, as the Crusaders hit a buzzer-beater to win it in San Antonio.
To view the entire SCAC Hoops Daily for week two, click here.
