Noble Cunningham came off the bench to score a team-high 14
points as Mars Hill College defeated Tusculum College 63-57 in a
South Atlantic Conference men's basketball matchup Saturday
afternoon at Stanford Arena.
Just six players scored for the Lions (4-13, 2-6 SAC), but four of
them reached double figures to help Mars Hill snap a seven-game
losing streak. Sammy Emile, who leads Division II in scoring
average at 26.6 points per game, managed just 10 points but saw
teammates Khouraichi Thiam (13) and Austin Patton (11) join him in
double figures in the contest.
Kevin Vest led the Pioneers (7-9, 4-4 SAC) with 23 points and a
game-high 10 rebounds, but Tusculum committed 21 turnovers and shot
just 11-for-17 (64.7 percent) from the foul line in the game.
Justin Steigerwald added 11 points and four assists and played a
big role in holding Emile 16 points under his season average, while
Nicholas Spinks contributed a season-high 10 points for the
Pioneers.
"Unfortunately, that's the second game in a row that we had an
amazing individual defensive effort that went for nothing. The job
that Justin Steigerwald did against the number-one scorer in the
nation (Emile) was just incredible," said Pioneer head coach
Michael Jones. "You think about the missed free throws and layups,
and I'm really disappointed and extremely frustrated. I can think
of three plays where we made passes and the ball bounced off our
hands. That's an issue of focus. I don't know exactly what
direction we are going to go, but we have to figure it out."
In a game that had 12 ties and five lead changes, it was the Lions
that took the lead for good at 57-55 on two foul shots by Emile
with 1:10 left. Tusculum had taken a 55-53 lead on two free throws
by Spinks with 2:46 to play, but the Lions' JaShawn Anderson
drained two at the line to knot the score at 55-55 with 2:15
left.
Trailing by two, the Pioneers missed on a three-point attempt and
Patton made one free throw with 35.5 seconds left to give Mars Hill
a 58-55 lead. Anderson and Vest each went 1-for-2 from the line on
back-to-back possessions as Mars Hill maintained a three-point lead
at 60-57 with 21.2 to play, but Anderson hit two foul shots after a
Pioneer turnover for a 62-57 Lions lead with 20.7 left and
Cunningham added the final point on a free throw with 12.6 on the
clock.
The game was tied five times in the first eight minutes before
Tusculum scored seven straight points to take a 22-16 lead on a
dunk by Steigerwald with 7:29 left in the first half. Mars Hill
responded with an 11-2 run to go on top 27-24 following a layup by
Cunningham with 2:26 left in the half.
The Lions then broke a 27-27 tie with seven straight points in the
final minute of the half, capped by a three-pointer by Cunningham
just before the buzzer after a turnover by the Pioneers. Mars Hill
led 34-27 at intermission despite allowing Tusculum to shoot 54.5
percent (12-for-22) from the field in the half. Tusculum would
slump off to 40 percent (10-for-25) in the second half to finish at
46.8 percent for the game.
Cunningham led the Lions with 11 points, including a 3-for-3 effort
from three-point range, while Vest and Steigerwald shared the
scoring lead for the Pioneers with eight points apiece in the first
half. Tusculum had 14 turnovers in the opening 20 minutes, leading
to 17 points for Mars Hill.
Mars Hill took its largest lead of the game at 36-27 following a
dunk by Thiam on the first possession of the second half, but the
Pioneers responded with an 11-2 run to tie the game at 38-38 on two
free throws by Vest with 15:40 left. The Lions built their lead
back up to five, but the Pioneers fought back yet again and evened
the contest at 47-47 on a putback by Anton Tuz with 9:00 to
play.
Tuz saw significant action at center for the Pioneers in the second
half, playing 17 minutes, and he finished the game with six points
on 3-for-7 shooting in a career-high 20 minutes of action. Dionte
Grey played a season-high 30 minutes for the Pioneers and grabbed a
career-best seven rebounds.
Vest reached the 20-point mark for the fifth time this season and
third time in the last four games. He shot 7-for-15 from the field,
including both of the Pioneers' three-pointers, and went 7-for-10
at the foul line. Over the last four games, Vest is averaging 21.8
points and 6.0 rebounds per game.
Tusculum will look to snap a two-game losing streak Wednesday night
when the Pioneers travel to Lenoir-Rhyne for a battle with the
Bears at Shuford Gym. Tipoff is slated for 8 p.m.
Mars Hill breaks late tie, defeats Tusculum 63-57
Posted: Jan 21, 2012
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