Hot shooting propels Bethany past Waynesburg, 93-77

Andrew Woodley, Sports Information Director

• Box Score

BETHANY, W.Va. (Jan. 20) - The Bison converted 58 percent of its shots in their 93-77 win over Waynesburg in a Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) game Saturday afternoon at the Hummel Field House.

The Bethany College men's basketball team improves to 8-2 in the PAC, 8-9 overall, and has now won each of its last five games. Meanwhile, the Yellow Jackets fall to 7-10 overall, 3-7 in conference play.

Senior guard Calique Jones (Pittsburgh, Pa./Obama Academy) lit up the scoreboard with 28 points on 9-of-13 shooting, including all three of his three-point attempts, and added a season-high nine rebounds with four assists in the win. Jones leads the PAC with 19.4 ppg. and moved into ninth place all-time in school history with 1,278 points in his career.

Sophomore forward Chaice Truex (Wheeling, W.Va./St. John's Central (Ohio)) posted 14 points and eight rebounds off of the bench. Senior guard Jerron Athey (Richmond, Va./Banner Christian) recorded a season-high with 13 points, grabbed five rebounds and dished out five assists. Senior center Liam Davis (Orlando, Fla./Orlando Christian Prep) also scored in double-figures with 10 points and six rebounds, while senior forward Nick Metz (Pittsburgh, Pa./Our Lady of the Sacred Heart) recorded a career-high eight points to go with four boards.

Bethany established a double-digit lead less than seven minutes into the contest when a Jones three-point shot put the Bison ahead 16-6 with 13:44 left in the first half. Waynesburg pulled within nine, 22-13, with 11:11 remaining until halftime, but a layup by senior guard Andrew Williams (Oil City, Pa./Oil City) gave Bethany a double-digit lead once again. The bucket started a run of 10-straight points for the Bison, who would enjoy a double-digit cushion for the remainder of the evening.

Waynesburg climbed back to within 10 points once again at 34-24 with just under four minutes left in the first half. The Bison cooled off and went nearly five minutes without a basket, but still managed to take a 40-26 lead into halftime.

The game was never in doubt in the second half. Bethany came out of the locker rooms and out-scored Waynesburg 22-to-9 over the first six minutes to build its largest lead of the game at 27 points, 62-35. The margin was too much for the Yellow Jackets to overcome and allowed the Bison to cruise to its fifth-straight win this season.

Bethany made 33-of-57 (58 percent) from the field and ended the evening with a season-best 21 assists. In addition to sharing the ball, Bethany took advantage of the charity stripe, converting 20-of-23 (87 percent) attempts at the free-throw line. The Bison led for over 37 minutes of game time and did not trail at any point.

The 91 points scored surpasses the team's previous season-high of 78 points scored on Wednesday in a win at Chatham.

The Bison will put their win streak on the line when they travel to Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania on Wednesday, January 24 to take on Geneva at 7:30 p.m. in a PAC contest. The Golden Tornadoes will also enter the contest with a five-game winning streak.