GRANTHAM, Pa. – A high-scoring first half from the Hood College men's basketball team helped lead the Blazers past the Messiah University Falcons 87-66 in a Middle Atlantic Conference Commonwealth showdown.
Inside the Box Score
Garrison Linton (New Market, Md./Oakdale) was all over the floor, racking up 20 points off 64 percent shooting accuracy, seven rebounds, and six assists.
Justin Gielen (Edgewater, Md./DeMatha) finished the afternoon with 11 points, going 5-9 from the field.
How it Happened
Hood, more specifically Linton, started the game off hot with a 10-5 run over the first five minutes of play, with Linton scoring eight himself.
Despite Messiah's best efforts, the Blazers continued to slowly extend their lead, answering each run the Falcons went on with a better run of their own, holding a 26-16 lead with nine minutes left in the half.
After a continuous barrage of offense from Linton and some long-range balls from
Will Spencer (Davidsonville, Md./Boys' Latin School), Hood found themselves ahead 53-39 heading into halftime.
Neither team could find an offensive groove to start the second half, but once Gielen made a shot from behind the arc for the first points of the half, the Blazers' offense returned for a 15-6 run for the next 5:40.
Although a pair of three-pointers from Messiah cut Hood's lead to 15 with just over eight minutes to play, that would be as close as the Blazers' defense would let them get, outscoring the Falcons 15-9 for the remainder of the game to come away with an 87-66 win.
For the Opponent
Bryce Coletti led Messiah with 20 points.
Evan Parker ended the game with 10 points and three steals.
Analysis
Hood shot 54 percent from the field overall as well as from three-point range, while Messiah shot just 33 percent from the floor, and 31 percent from long range.
The Blazers outrebounded the Falcons 39-24.
Hood's bench outscored Messiah's 40-29.
Notes
The Blazers improve to 10-2 (2-0), while the Falcons drop to 4-9 (0-2).
Up Next
The Blazers come home for a MAC Commonwealth matchup against Albright Wednesday, January 10 at 7 p.m.
