Men's Hoops Cages Tomcats

Dec. 5 – BETHANY, W. Va. – The Bethany College men's basketball team (3-3, 1-1 PAC) locked down defensively to earn their first conference victory of the season as the Green & White defeated Thiel College 67-44 on Saturday afternoon.

The first 20 minutes of action saw a defensive struggle as the two teams combined to shoot 19-of-57 in the first half.

Bethany put together the first run of the game in the opening two minutes, jumping out to an 8-0 advantage. Javonte' Trujillo (Aurora, Colo./Grandview) got Bethany on the board, knocking down his first three-point attempt. Darrian Bruster (Cleveland, Ohio/Cleveland Central Catholic) added back-to-back buckets to finish the run, and the Bison were up eight with 17:56 remaining.

Thiel would immediately respond, using an 8-0 run of their own to knot the game at 8-8. From there, the two teams would find themselves tied five more times throughout the half.

The biggest lead for the visiting Tomcats came at the 5:02 mark of the frame as a Luke Kochka jumper put Thiel up by three (23-20). The Bison, meanwhile never matched their largest lead of eight. The Green & White, however, took a one-point lead into the locker room, thanks to a 6-2 run over the final five minutes of the half.

Both Calique Jones (Pittsburgh, Pa./Obama Academy) and Liam Davis (Orlando, Fla./Orlando Christian Prep.) tallied buckets in the run, as the Bison held Thiel to just one made field goal over the final five minutes. When the dust settled, the Bison held a 26-25 advantage at the break.

Bethany received a large boost from their reserves in the opening half as Davis and Andrew Williams (Oil City, Pa./Oil City) combined for 11 of the team's 26 points off the bench. The Bison defense also paved the way, holding Thiel to 32 percent shooting while forcing 11 Tomcat turnovers.

For as good as the Bison played on the defensive side in the first half, Bethany on-upped itself in the second stanza. The Green & White afforded the Tomcats just seven made field goals in the frame to pull away from Thiel and capture their first PAC win.

The second half was still close through the first five minutes of the frame as both sides traded baskets. Identical jumpers by Bethany's Jones and Thiel's Avril Campbell had the Bison up 32-31 with 15:42 to play.

It was then that the Green & White would distance themselves from their opponent. Over the next 10 minutes, Bethany would outscore Thiel 27-5 to balloon the one-point lead into a sizable 23-point advantage.

The Bison held Thiel to just two made field goals over the ten-minute stretch, while getting offensive contributions from throughout the lineup. Bethany started the swing with an 11-2 run, including three-point baskets from Williams and Jerron Athey (Richmond, Va./Banner Christian).

After Thiel cut the lead to single-digits (43-34) with 10:31 to play, Bethany would widen the gap to 23 points with a 16-2 run. Davis put together five points in the run, while Athey added four points to the cause. The run was capped by a jumper from Antonio Rudolph (New Castle, Pa./New Castle) with 5:44 to play, giving the hosts a 59-36 lead.

Bethany would swell the advantage to as many as 25 (67-42), before settling for the 23-point victory, pushing their home record to 3-1 on the season.

As a team, the Bison held Thiel to 29 percent shooting for the game, the lowest by any Bison opponent this season. The Green & White held the Tomcats to 19 points in the second stanza, which included just 14 from the field on seven made field goals (five points from the free-throw line).

Individually, the forwards gave the Bison the boost that they needed as Davis, Trujillo and Bruster combined for 37 of the teams 67 points. Davis played a solid all-around game off the bench, coming just one rebound shy of his first double-double with 13 points and nine rebounds.

Trujillo was efficient in his first start of the season, shooting three-of-four from behind the three-point line to collect 13 points. He also added four rebounds. Bruster also shot well, finishing four-of-eight for 11 points.

The Bison reserves outplayed the Tomcats all day, as Bethany outscored Thiel 30-8 in bench points. Along with Davis' 13, Athey added a career-high eight, while Williams finished with eight points and five rebounds.

The Bison will be back in action on Saturday, December 12 as they play host to Geneva College. The matchup with the Golden Tornadoes is scheduled to follow the women's game which is set for a six p.m. tip.