Strong Second Half Powers Men's Basketball to Victory
| Final | 1 | 2 | T |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adrian College 2-3 | 23 | 27 | 50 |
| UM-Dearborn 3-7 | 16 | 36 | 52 |
Dearborn, MI - The most important time to have the lead is when the final horn sounds. The men's basketball team proved that Monday night as the Wolverines defeated the Adrian College Bulldogs 52-50 and only had the the lead for about 31 seconds in the entire game. In the first half Adrian College (2-2) controlled the game and at one point led by 11 points. Michigan-Dearborn (3-7, 1-3) fought back to pull within seven points, 23-16, at halftime. The Wolverines shot just 22% from the field in the first half, but luckily for them, there was still twenty minutes left to play.
Michigan-Dearborn began chpping away at the lead early in the second half with a three pointer by junior Victor Mattison and then a coast-to-coast basket by sophomore Brandon Cole. It seemed like every time the Wolverines would get the lead down to three or four points, the Bulldogs would build it back up to eight or nine points in seemingly no time at all. That trend continued until four minutes were left to play. After Cole split two free throws, a defensive stop led to another Cole basket pulling Michigan-Dearborn within three points. Another defensive stop led to senior Jamiel Strickland scoring in the paint and the deficit was just one point. Both teams would commit turnovers and the lead remained one point for Adrian until freshman Deonte Ball got into the paint, got fouled, made the basket, and gave the Wolverines their first lead of the game with 57 seconds left. He made the free throw for the two point lead. Eric Lewis of Adrian would tie the score up just 30 seconds later. Michigan-Dearborn would have the ball with 28 seconds left in a tie game. It would be Ball again who found his way into the paint scoring the game winning basket with just 2 seconds remaining. A last second shot would not got in for the Bulldogs, and the Wolverines would win their second consecutive game of the season.
Cole led the Wolverines with 11 points and 6 rebounds, while Mattison and sophomore Gage Throgmorton each chipped in with 9 points. The men's basketball team heads on the road Wednesday night to take on the Cornerstone Golden Eagles at 7:30pm.
Team Stats
Adrian College
| Game Statistics | Adrian College | UM-Dearborn |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | (18-46) | (19-45) |
| Field Goal % | 39.1% | 42.2% |
| Rebounds | 29 | 35 |
| Assists | 2 | 7 |
| Turnovers | 10 | 12 |
| Pts off Turnovers | 7 | 8 |
| 2nd Chance Pts | 6 | 3 |
| Pts in the Paint | 22 | 26 |
| Fastbreak Pts | 2 | 4 |
| Bench Pts | 5 | 9 |
