MECHANICSBURG, Pa. – The No. 16 Hood College Men's Basketball team would grind out an 80-62 conference win over Messiah on the road with a strong first half performance and defensive poise late in the second to stay unbeaten in MAC Commonwealth play on Wednesday night.
Inside the Box Score
Garrett Cox (Glen Allen, VA/Glen Allen) shot an efficient 8-for-13 from the field totaling 22 points and seven rebounds.
Jevon Yarbrough (Hagerstown, Md./Williamsport) drops a double double with 22 points, 10 rebounds and six assists.
How it Happened
The teams traded baskets throughout the first three minutes of the game until the 7-7 mark brought four-straight successful possessions for the Blazers. Possessions that needed little of the shot clock and were proven in the paint which created the cushion Hood is used to playing with.
Cox has battled on the glass all year to make an impact on the game even when the offensive efficiency hadn't been there but after two made threes he looked in the best shape he had been all season. His ability to knock down the three opened up the threat for him to attack the basket, which a pump fake on the ensuing possession opened up his defender and made him vulnerable to a driving Cox to result in a 24-9 lead for the Blue and Grey seven minutes in.
Hood continued its pace and led by almost 20 during the first half thanks to extra possessions earned by Messiah turnovers that made up for the downtick in field goal percentage.
The squad would look to hold that gap until the 12-minute mark in the second half, where they would spend six minutes stretch scoring just three points via free throws. The Falcons battled on the offensive glass and Caleb Lyles would be hard to answer as his play in the paint would reel the game closer to contention.
The Blazers would rely on their defensive efforts to keep out of danger,
Jude Huseby (Frederick, Md./Urbana) showed physicality to grab meaningful boards while Cox continued his all around performance with his on ball defense all in effort to churn out a win.
"We had a solid first half, but we got outplayed in the second half…no two ways about it," said head coach
Chad Dickman. "This was the first game in a while that I thought we got out-toughed, and that can't happen."
"But overall, hard to complain when you finish the first round of the conference schedule undefeated. These guys know how good we can be and we just have to continue holding them to the highest standards."
For the Opponent
Caleb Lyles scores 22 points but was scoreless beyond the arc.
Analysis
Hood shot 10-for-36 from three, but shot more effectively from two (54 percent) and three (28 percent) to get the job done.
The Blazers led the points off of turnovers battle 21-8.
Messiah beat Hood on the boards 48-42, which is unusual for the Blazers this season.
Notes
Hood improves to 16–2, 7–0 in the MAC Commonwealth to retain their two-game lead of first place.
Messiah falls to 4–14, extending to 0–7 in conference play.
Up Next
The squad travels to Widener on Saturday, January 31 with tipoff set for 3 p.m.. Hood took round one 103-86 in Woodsboro Bank Arena and had three 20-point scores in the contest.
