Men’s Basketball Swarms Past Lyndon State, 87-55
QUINCY, Mass.- Returning to the hardwood after a 16-day hiatus, the Eastern Nazarene College men's basketball team snapped a five-game skid with an 87-55 non-conference victory over Lyndon State Saturday afternoon at the Lahue Physical Education Center.
The Lions improve to 4-6 on the season with the win while the Hornets drop to 1-7 overall with the result.
Josh Rice (Hanson, Mass.) scored 22 points to lead all players. David Lopez (Miami, Fla.) posted a double-double for the second-straight game, finishing with 15 rebounds and 10 points. Noah Cheney (Bend, Ore.) netted 13 points, grabbed three boards, and dished out three assists. Trey'von Davis (Moore, S.C.) chipped in with 11 points and nine rebounds while Jacob Waldroop (Newland, N.C.) registered eight points and five assists.
After scoring the first six points of the game, the home side extended its lead to nine with 16:05 remaining in the first half on a basket by Lopez.
The visitors cut the deficit to 18-16 as Robbie Rouelle drained a three-pointer with nine minutes left to play in the opening frame.
Eastern Nazarene widened the gap to 20 points with 1:44 on the clock as Rice poured in 15 consecutive points, 43-23. The sophomore splashed four treys and added a layup followed by a free throw within a 2:15 span.
Eastern Nazarene sported a 15-point advantage at the half, 46-31, after Waldroop nailed a three-pointer from the left corner just before the buzzer.
Rice paced all scorers with 18 points in the first half while Lopez notched nine rebounds and six points.
The Lions shot 42.9% from the floor and 45.0% from behind the arc in the first period. The Hornets boasted a field-goal percentage of 43.5% at the break to go with 40% shooting from long distance.
The hosts stretched their lead to 28 with 9:42 remaining in regulation on a put-back layup by Cheney, 69-41.
Eastern Nazarene's advantage stayed above 20 points throughout the remainder of the contest. The largest lead of the afternoon came in the final minute of play as Robbion Harris (Steilacoom, Wash.) threw down a two-handed jam to extend the margin to 87-53.
The Lions finshed with a field goal percentage of 40% while connecting on 12-of-30 from three-point range. The Hornets shot 40.4% from the field and 26.3% from beyond the arc on the day.
Darren Williams Jr. netted 15 points to lead Lyndon State while Jahleel Gabriel chipped in with eight points and six boards.
Up next, Eastern Nazarene resumes Commonwealth Coast Conference play January 4 at home against Endicott.