DETROIT, Mich. – Despite shooting 59.1% from behind the arc, the University of Michigan-Dearborn (0-1) men's basketball team was plagued by turnovers at the Matthaei Center, resulting in a 94-81 loss against a strong Saint Francis (Ind.) (1-0) team.
UM-Dearborn Leaders
Maurice Anderson and Andrew Leamy led the Wolverines with 15 points. Leamy and Anderson combined to score 22 of UM-D's 39 first-half points. Dearborn shot 43.5% (27-62) from the floor and drilled 13 trifectas (13-22) compared to Saint Francis, shooting just 19% (4-21) from behind the arc.
Saint Francis (Ind.) Leaders
Returning Second-Team NAIA All-American Antwaan Cushingberry led all scorers with 26 points on 10-21 shooting. Zane Burke added a double-double with 23 points and 13 rebounds, five on the offensive end. Branden Northern and Brayton Bailey rounded out the scoring with 13 and 10 points, respectively.
Inside the Game
The Cougars jumped out to an early 11-4 lead in the game's first four minutes before Dearborn would go on a mini-run ending with an Elwood Tomlinson triple to tie the game at 13. USF would go on a run of their own before Dearborn would call a timeout down 20-13 with 13:45 remaining in the opening half. Down 44-27, Leamy would leave his mark on the game rattling off three consecutive triples to bring the deficit down to 10 with 2:14 left. However, Dearborn wouldn't get any closer as they headed into the locker room trailing 50-39.
Tomlinson would connect on a three-ball with 16:27 to play to make it a 54-43 ballgame before a slew of empty possessions saw the Cougars get their biggest lead of the night in a 61-43 game. After a Wolverine timeout, Anderson connected on his second three of the night with 14:15 remaining.
Despite a strong shooting night behind the arc for the Wolverines, the Cougars showed why they came a game short of the sweet 16 last season, as their stifling defense gave UM-D trouble all night, forcing them into 18 turnovers.
Up Next
Dearborn will regroup and travel to Grace College on Saturday (Oct. 29). Tip-off is set for 6 pm.
