By Nicholas Huenefeld/Owens Sports Information
Toledo, Ohio---The No. 8 Express men's basketball team fell victim to a hot-shooting Kalamazoo Valley Community College team in a 117-109 loss in the SHAC tonight.
The Cougars finished 42-for-70 (60 percent) overall from the field, 12-for-16 (75 percent) from 3-point range and 21-for-26 (80.8 percent) from the foul line.
Despite all that, the Express led 53-51 at halftime thanks to 19-for-36 shooting (52.8 percent) overall on their end in the half. John Murry (North Central/Indianapolis, Ind.) had a team-high 13 points in the first half.
However, the Cougars had three players score double-figures in the second half along, led by 15 from Jevonte Hughes. They stretched their lead to 15 at 74-59 with 15:08 left in the half before the Express made their first of two runs in the half.
Over the next four minutes, the Express made a 15-3 run to pull within 77-74 with 11:36 left. During that stretch, Edmond Early Jr. (Thurgood Marshall/Dayton, Ohio) had two 3-pointers, while Martez Asberry (Douglas Academy/Detroit, Mich.) had a 3-point play and Tony Boykins (Loy Norrix/Kalamazoo, Mich.) had four points.
Following a timeout, though, the Cougars answered with a 9-0 run to take an 86-74 lead with 9:56 left. They stretched their lead to as many as 101-82 with 6:36 left, and they led 109-92 with 4:22 left before the Express made their second run of the half.
A 13-2 run pulled the Express within 111-106 with 35 seconds left, and an Andy Bachman (North Side/Fort Wayne, Ind.) 3-pointer pulled the Express even closer at 113-109 with 23 seconds left. The Cougars, however, remained undaunted and finished 6-for-6 from the foul line down the stretch to pick up the win.
Boykins led the Express with 20 points, 11 rebounds (10 offensive), two steals, one assist and one block, while Murry had 20 points, six rebounds, one assist and one steal off the bench. Asberry was also huge off the bench with 18 points, three rebounds, three assists and three steals.
The Express had two other players in double figures - Early (12 points, three assists) and Bachman (10 points, five rebounds, two steals).
The Express, who fell to 3-2 with the loss, shot 40-for-85 (47.1 percent) from the field, 12-for-31 (38.7 percent) from the foul line and 17-for-24 (70.8 percent). They actually had fewer turnovers (19-20) than the Cougars and out-rebounded them 43-36, but couldn't control the hot shooting of the Cougars, who improved to 2-0 this year.
Bikramjit Gill (Our Ascension of the Lord/Toronto, Ontario, Canada) and Markese Allen (Crockett/Detroit, Mich.) each added nine points for the Express, while Allen had a game-high 10 assists. Allen's assist total tied his career-high from Feb. 9 of last year.
The Cougars, who are 3-0 against the Express since the beginning of last season, were led by Hughes (24 points, nine rebounds, two assists, two steals, two blocks) and Tyler Oliver (21 points, eight rebounds, six assists and four steals). Jibreel Hussein and Davonte Harris each chipped in 19 points for the Cougars.
The Express will next play on Saturday against Lake Michigan College beginning at 3 p.m. in the SHAC.
Notes
The 226 combined points was 17 away from tying the Owens single game record for most points combined for both teams. Additionally, the Cougars were two points away from breaking the Owens single game record for most points allowed by an opponent.
Andrew Scarton, who played for the Express men's basketball team during the 2010-11 season, had two points, one rebound and three turnovers in six minutes off the bench for the Cougars. His head coach during that season at Owens, Kevin Skaggs, was in attendance for the game. Skaggs has previous coaching experience at Owens and Kalamazoo Valley.