Men's Hoops Falls to Thomas More in PAC Tournament Semifinals
Feb. 25 – BETHANY, W. Va. – The Bethany College men's basketball team saw their Presidents' Athletic Conference Championship Tournament bid end in the semifinals as the Green & White dropped a 68-62 decision to Thomas More College on Thursday evening.
The Green & White took the early advantage, using a 10-4 run through the first five minutes to take a six-point lead. Sophomore Andrew Williams (Oil City, Pa./Oil City) got the run going with back-to-back baskets. Calique Jones (Pittsburgh, Pa./Obama Academy) also added four points to the run. The duo combined for 39 points in the game.
Thomas More would chip away at the Bison lead in the half, but Bethany responded in each instance. Alan Harper (Cleveland, Ohio/Cleveland Central Catholic) kept the Saints at bay with a three-point bucket at the 6:19 mark, giving Bethany a 25-21 lead.
A 7-0 run by the Saints would give the visitors their first lead of the game. Michael Griffin and Austin Young converted on back-to-back buckets before a three by Sawyer Pauly put Thomas More ahead 28-25.
A Javonte' Trujillo (Aurora, Colo./Grandview) three-point basket would knot the game at 28-28 and the teams would find themselves knotted three more times before the halftime break. The Green & White would get the last bucket of the half, a jumper by Antonio Rudolph (New Castle, Pa./New Castle), and would take a two-point advantage into the break, 36-34.
In the early stages of the second half, the teams kept the score within one possession as a three by Williams put the Bison in front 45-43.
From that score, however, the tide would turn in favor of the visiting Saints. Thomas More controlled the next ten minutes of the half, outscoring the Green & White 19-5 to take a 62-50 lead with just under four minutes remaining in the game. Three-consecutive three-point baskets fueled the run which proved to be the difference in the decision.
Bethany showed fight in the late stages of the second half, using an 8-0 run to cut the lead to just four points. Another three from Williams, as well as four-consecutive points by Jones, cut the Saint lead to 62-58 with one minute to play.
In the late stages, the Bison were forced to foul and the Saints converted all six of their free-throw chances down the stretch, handing Bethany the 68-62 defeat.
Jones had a career day for the Green & White, posting a career-high 23 points on 9-of-13 shooting from the field. Williams was the only other Bison in double figures on the day, finishing with 16 points on 6-of-12 shooting, including a pair of three-point baskets.
Other leaders for the Bison included Harper and Rudolph. Harper finished with nine points, while Rudolph totaled five points, five assists and eight rebounds.
