Bethany topples Waynesburg in PAC opener, 79-65

Andrew Woodley, Sports Information Director

BETHANY, W.Va. (Nov. 30) – Led by four players in double-figures, the Bison recorded a 79-65 win over Waynesburg in each team's Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) opener Wednesday evening at the Hummel Fieldhouse.

The Bethany College men's basketball team improves to 1-0 in league play, 4-1 overall. Meanwhile, the Yellow Jackets fall to 1-4 overall, 0-1 in the PAC.

Junior guard Calique Jones (Pittsburgh, Pa./Obama Academy) led the team with 16 points on 6-for-12 shooting and added three assists in the win. Classmate Andrew Williams (Oil City, Pa./Oil City) tallied 13 points, while senior guard Antonio Rudolph (New Castle, Pa./New Castle) and freshman forward Chaice Truex (Wheeling, W.Va./St. John Central) each chipped in 12 to help the Bison to victory. Rudolph added a game-high five steals to his final line.

Bethany tallied the game's first seven points and opened up a 22-9 lead, capped off by a dunk by Rudolph, which forced a Waynesburg timeout at just under the halfway point of the first half.

The Yellow Jackets chipped into the lead with a 12-2 spurt that pulled them within three, 24-21, with under five minutes until halftime. The Green & White managed to hold Waynesburg without a field goal over the final stretch and headed into the locker rooms with a 30-23 lead.

Bethany extended its lead over the first nine minutes of the second half. The Bison pulled out to a 52-40 advantage with 11:07 remaining in the game.

Waynesburg clipped the lead back to single-digits at 56-49 with just over seven minutes on the clock, but Bethany did not allow them to get any closer. The Bison ended the game by out-scoring the Yellow Jackets 23-16 to close out the win.

Bethany held a 40-to-26 advantage in points in the paint and a slim 38-to-36 edge on the glass. Both team's had their fair share of free throws. Waynesburg and Bethany combined for 42 fouls and 47 free-throw attempts, with the Bison converting 20-of-30 attempts (67 percent).

Senior forward Javonte' Trujillo (Aurora, Colo./Grandview) led the team with nine rebounds. The Bison were credited with 10 blocked shots, including two from Jones, Rudolph, Williams, Truex and junior center Liam Davis (Orlando, Fla./Orlando Christian).

Bethany never trailed and the game was only tied for the opening 11 seconds of the contest.

Bethany will hit the road on Saturday, December 3 when they head to Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania to take on Geneva at 3 p.m.