By Nicholas Huenefeld/Owens Sports Information
Kirtland, OH---The Express men could not overcome a large deficit at the foul line in a 82-72 loss to No. 12 Lakeland Community College on the road Wednesday night.
Lakeland attempted 27 free throws in the game, while the Express only attempted two. Kelvin Clark (Bogan/Chicago, IL) got to the line with 1:07 remaining in the game for the only two Express attempts. Lakeland was whistled for only nine fouls in the game.
Despite all that, the Express led for a decent portion of the first half and made it a close game for part of the second half, thanks to the play of James Kelly (Pioneer/Ann Arbor, MI) and Jordan Basinger (Kalida/Kalida, OH).
Despite being limited to only nine minutes in the first half due to foul trouble, Kelly finished 9-for-15 from the field and led Owens with 18 points, 10 rebounds, one assist, one block and one steal.
Meanwhile, Basinger got the first start of his career and finished with 12 points, five rebounds, four steals and two assists. He played a season-high 34 minutes and finished 5-for-9 from the field. He also made the first three point field goal of his career.
In fact, it was Basinger's second three pointer of the game from the right corner that tied the game at 46 with 12:57 remaining in the second half.
However, a 13-4 run over the next 3:36 helped give Lakeland the momentum back. Owens never got closer than that, and Lakeland stretched their lead to 15 at three different times over the final ten minutes.
Justin Edmonds (Albion/Albion, MI) added 10 points, two rebounds and two assists for Owens. Milan Mabry (Bowsher/Toledo, OH) added nine points off the bench on 3-for-6 shooting from long range.
Mabry and others helped the Express shoot 11-for-30 from beyond the three point line to assist in keeping the game close.
Four players scored in double figures for Lakeland. Brendan Cooper led the way with 21 points, nine rebounds and three blocks, while Chaz Rollins had 16 points, seven rebounds and three steals. Deran Banton and Martell Medley each added 14 points, while Banton had a game-high five steals.
Owens shot 30-for-66 overall from the field, while Lakeland shot 30-for-61. Lakeland had more rebounds (39-32), points in the paint (48-30), points off turnovers (30-16), second chance points (10-5), steals (13-9) and bench points (25-20).
The game was tied three times and the lead changed three times.
Owens is now 15-8 overall and 2-3 in the OCCAC. They have lost three consecutive games. Meanwhile, Lakeland moves to 16-3 overall and 2-1 in the OCCAC.
The Express will now have a week off before resuming action next Wednesday Feb. 1 against Edison State at 7:30 p.m. in the SHAC.