Conference Frontrunners to Meet Saturday in Lexington
January 10, 2008
GREENWOOD , IN – Two teams remain unblemished in conference action heading into Saturday and both will meet at the Beck Center in Lexington, Kentucky. Defiance (9-4, 4-0 HCAC) and Transylvania (8-4, 4-0 HCAC) will showdown with the victor earning a slight advantage in the early stages of the conference championship hunt.
Defiance has been solid the past month, earning three straight wins and posting W’s in seven of their last eight outings. The Jackets defeated Mount St. Joseph 88-64 at home last week in their only conference game. Senior guard C.J. Johnson (Toledo, Ohio/St. Francis DeSales) scored 17 points on seven of 12 shooting from the field and currently leads the conference with 17.9 points per game this season. Junior center Anthony Pettaway (Toledo, Ohio/Bowsher) was named the HCAC Men’s Player of the Month for December with his efforts last month. The junior is averaging 13.8 points per game and ranks second in the league with 7.8 rebounds per game. As a team, DC leads the HCAC in scoring margin, outscoring its opponents by 9.8 points per game. The Yellow Jackets will square off with the Pioneers at 3:00 PM Saturday before a tough home date with Franklin January 16.
Transylvania will look for their fourth straight win Saturday against Defiance. The Pioneers posted two conference wins last week, defeating Rose-Hulman 61-58 on the road and beating Franklin 82-77. Sophomore guard Matthew Parton (Knoxville, Tenn./Knoxville Catholic) scored 12 points to lead Transy in the win over the Engineers and junior forward Brock Jones (Madisonville, Ky./N. Hopkins) scored 20 points off the bench to pace the way against Franklin. The Pioneers have a solid 4-1 home record this season and will look to continue that trend with two tough conference foes coming to town this week. Defiance and Transy will tangle Saturday before third place Hanover comes to Lexington Wednesday.
Hanover (7-6, 3-1 HCAC) snapped a five game losing streak on Wednesday night with an 89-75 win over visiting Anderson. Senior center Robby Brown (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mariemont) scored 25 points and grabbed 14 rebounds to lead the Panther victory march. The senior ranks first in the conference with 8.5 rebounds per game and also averages 10.6 points per game. Hanover holds a 4-1 mark at home and will entertain Bluffton Saturday afternoon. The Panthers will look to improve on their 3-5 record away from home January 16 at conference leading Transylvania.
Bluffton (9-5, 3-2 HCAC) split a pair of conference match-ups last week and has won three of their last four games. The Beavers fell to Anderson 96-85 to begin the week, but rebounded to defeat Manchester 80-67 at home Wednesday night. Junior forward Nick Wilson (Payne, Ohio/Continental) scored 24 points in a losing cause. Junior guard Colt Cunningham (Powell, Ohio/ Worthington Christian) scored 19 points to lead BU’s win over Manchester. As a team, Bluffton leads the conference in free throw percentage (81.0%), rebounding (37.1 rpg), and blocks per game (2.5). BU will travel to Hanover Saturday and will return to Founders Hall next Wednesday for a clash with Mount St. Joseph.
Anderson (6-8, 2-3 HCAC) began the week on the right foot by beating Bluffton 96-85, but failed to win their final two outings. The Ravens lost on the road to Olivet 80-71 and fell at Hanover 89-75 to finish the week. Junior guard Mike Russell (Indianapolis, Ind./Pike) earned the conference’s Player of the Week award for his outing against Bluffton. The junior scored 37 points and connected on nine three point attempts in the win over the Beavers. Russell scored 23 points in the loss to Hanover to raise his scoring average to 15.1 points per game. Sophomore guard Ryan Fultz (Knightstown, Ind./H.S.) was the leading scorer in the loss to Olivet, scoring 18 points on the night. As a team, the Ravens lead the conference in scoring (80.9 ppg) and steals (11.57 pg). Anderson will travel to Franklin Saturday before a home date with Manchester next week.
Franklin (7-6, 1-3 HCAC) saw its winning streak hit four games with two wins early last week. The Grizzlies beat Millikin 63-57 and won at Manchester 74-60 before that win streak came to a halt at Transylvania. Junior guard Dustin Marshall (Lexington, Ind./Scottsburg) scored 18 points against Millikin and 15 points in the win over the Spartans. Senior forward Marty Young (Norman, Ind./Brownstown Central) notched 15 points in the MC victory and posted a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds against Millikin. In the 82-77 loss to Transy, Young scored 22 points and grabbed six rebounds to lead the Franklin effort. The Norman, Indiana native is averaging 15.0 points and 7.3 rebounds per game, while ranking second in the conference with a 63.0% shooting percentage. FC will play host to Anderson Saturday before heading to conference leader Defiance January 16.
Manchester (3-10, 1-3 HCAC) ran its losing streak to six in a row with two losses last week against conference foes. The Spartans dropped a 74-60 decision at home to Franklin before losing at Bluffton 80-67. Junior forward Jeff Grabowski (Ft. Wayne, Ind./ Homestead) scored 16 points and added six rebounds in the loss to Franklin. Freshman Mitch Schaefer (Ft. Wayne, Ind./Carroll) led MC with 18 points in the loss to the Beavers. The black and gold will host Rose-Hulman Saturday afternoon and then will look for their first road win of the year against Anderson Wednesday night.
The College of Mount St. Joseph (7-7, 1-4 HCAC) won two of their three games last week to get back to the 500 mark on the year. The Lions beat Adrian 74-72 and Rose-Hulman 75-62 with their loss coming at red-hot Defiance 88-64. Sophomore forward Michael Eirons (Huron, Ohio/H.S.) scored 20 points and grabbed seven boards in the win over Adrian and added 17 points against the Yellow Jackets. The sophomore ranks third in the conference with 15.1 points per game. Senior guard Josh Carter (Sidney, Ohio/Anna Local) was the leading scorer with 21 points in MSJ’s defeat of Rose-Hulman. The Mount has been paced by the play of sophomore Michael Romes (Villa Hills, Ky./Beechwood) this season. The sophomore forward’s 17.0 points per game ranks second in the HCAC and he leads the league with a 63.7% shooting percentage. As a team, Mount St. Joseph leads the conference in field goal percentage (50.7%) and three-point field goal percentage (39.9%). The Lions will look to improve on their 1-6 road record at Bluffton January 16.
Rose-Hulman (4-9, 1-4 HCAC) had a tough week losing both conference contests. The Engineers began the week with a close loss at home to first place Transylvania 61-58. Senior guard Ron George (Louisville, Ky./Dupont Manual) scored 16 points in the loss to the Pioneers and raised his season average to 13.3 points per game. Rose dropped a 75-62 decision at Mount St. Joseph to end the week. Freshman center Michael Kelly (Ft. Myers, Fla./H.S.) scored 15 points in the loss to the Lions. RHIT leads the HCAC in scoring defense this season, allowing only 60.9 points per game. The Engineers will travel to Manchester Saturday before a non-conference clash with Robert Morris-Springfield on January 15.
Men’s Basketball Schedule (Jan. 10-Jan. 16)
Jan. 12 |
Defiance at Transylvania |
3:00 PM |
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Rose-Hulman at Manchester |
3:00 PM |
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Anderson at Franklin |
3:00 PM |
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Bluffton at Hanover |
3:00 PM |
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Jan. 15 |
Robert Morris-Springfield at Rose-Hulman |
8:00 PM |
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Jan. 16 |
Franklin at Defiance |
7:30 PM |
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Hanover at Transylvania |
7:30 PM |
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Manchester at Anderson |
7:30 PM |
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Mount St. Joseph at Bluffton |
7:30 PM |