Malone University Athletic Department issued the following announcement on Feb. 17
On Thursday night, for the final time in the 2021-22 regular season, the Malone University men's basketball team was on the road.
The Pioneers traveled to take on the Tiffin University Dragons in a Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) matchup.
Malone (17-6, 12-4 G-MAC) led by as many as fourteen points inside of the final three minutes, but was forced to hold off a furious comeback attempt by the upset minded Dragons (10-15, 5-12 G-MAC) to hang on for the 90-86 win.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
It was a matchup of the two top scoring offenses in the G-MAC, and both teams exceeded their season averages.
The Pioneers were on the verge of opening up a double-digit lead midway through the first half, but the Dragons were able to close the gap and keep pace.
A Bo Myers three-pointer put MU ahead 21-12 with 12:47 left to play in the half, but Tiffin answered by scoring nine of the next eleven points to make it 23-21 with 8:31 remaining until halftime.
Malone never completely lost their lead however. The Dragons tied things up at 33-33, but the Pioneer defense held Tiffin scoreless for the final 2:30 of the half.
MU's offense scored the next six points unanswered. The run was capped off by an outstanding defensive play by Eli Ramsey that led to a fastbreak layup for Myers on the other end to close out the half.
Ultimately Malone held a 39-33 advantage at halftime.
The two sides swapped scores for several possessions to open the second-half before a huge Tiffin run gave the home team some momentum.
Two more points from Myers put the Pioneers up 46-42 at the 15:26 mark of the second half. The Dragons held Malone scoreless for nearly three full minutes following that play.
On Tiffin's offensive end, the result was a 16-2 run that put the Dragons up double-digits for the first time all evening.
However, it did not take long for Malone to respond.
A jumper from Bryce Butler cut the deficit down to eight. That kick started a 15-0 Pioneer run that put MU back on top 63-58.
Malone kept the pressure on, and just a few possessions later back-to-back Justin Miller triples had the Pioneers' lead out to 76-63 with just four minutes remaining in the game.
A couple of minutes later Marcus Ernst gave MU their largest lead of the night on a jumper. With 2:04 left to play Malone led 81-67.
The Dragons refused to fold.
Tylin Lockett-Fuller scored fifteen of his game-high forty points inside of those final two minutes to really keep the pressure on the Pioneers.
Malone was able to hold on however. MU was perfect on all eight of their final free throw attempts to hang on for the 90-86 win.
PIONEER POINTS
- Bryce Butler led the Pioneers with a season-high 32 points, just one point shy of his career high. He was 12-19 from the field and 6-7 from the free throw line. His season average now stands at a team-best 17.8 points per game.
- Justin Miller was a perfect 3-3 from behind the three-point line, and finished with 15 total points.
- Marcus Ernst added 13 points and a team-high six assists. He also pulled down nine rebounds, just one shy of recording his sixth double-double of the season.
- Bo Myers rounded out the double-digit scorers for the Pioneers with 13 points.
- Malone dominated the Dragons underneath the basket. They outscored Tiffin 52-36 on points inside the paint, and held a 38-32 advantage in rebounds.
Malone will be back at home on Saturday when they host Ashland University. Tip-off from Osborne Hall is set for 3:00 p.m.
Original source can be found here.
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