Box Score

The Malone University men's basketball team charged out to an early 22-8 lead and never looked back on Saturday afternoon as the squad pocketed a convincing 83-64 win in its home contest against Notre Dame College.  The hot-shooting Pioneers drained over 65% (17 of 26) of their first-half shot attempts to build a substantial 46-25 lead at intermission.  The hosts' advantage then ballooned to as many as 30 points in the second half en route to the 19-point triumph.  The Falcons' overall record slipped to 8-15 following Saturday's defeat while Malone stretched its winning streak to three games, improving to 11-12 overall.  With the victory, the Pioneers evened the season series with NDC at 1-1, avenging an 85-84 overtime loss to the Falcons at Notre Dame's Murphy Gymnasium on January 21st.  

Guard Isiah Elliott led all scorers in the contest with 19 points.  The sophomore from Canton McKinley High School had a perfect shooting night, hitting both of his free throws and all seven of his shots from the field, including three treys.  Elliott also grabbed five steals and set the tone early for Malone, hitting a three-pointer on the opening possession of the game and then adding a steal and fast-break lay-up on Notre Dame's first trip down the floor.  After virtually single-handedly building the Pioneers' early 5-0 lead, Elliott would go on to pocket nine more first-half points. 

Guard Eric Coblentz followed with 17 points, 15 of which came over the first 20 minutes as Malone built its commanding halftime advantage.  The senior hit three of his attempts from beyond the arc and also handed out a game-high five assists.  Forward Zach Bates came off the bench to contribute 12 points and six boards while forward Che Richardson tossed in nine points and pulled down six rebounds.

After the net-scorching first-half shooting performance, Malone cooled off a bit in the final stanza, connecting on 12 of 27 (44.4%) second-half field goals.  The Pioneers ended the afternoon having made 29 of 53 (54.7%) shots from the floor, 10 of 22 (45.5%) three-pointers and 15 of 17 free throws.  Notre Dame countered by converting on 24 of its 58 (41.4%) field goals, eight of its 19 (42.1%) treys and eight of its 14 (57.1%) foul shots. 

Guard Lawrence Dearmond and forward Phil Biggs each netted 11 points apiece to lead the way for the Falcons.  Biggs also grabbed eight rebounds and handed out three assists.

Malone will look to make it four wins in a row next Saturday when the squad returns to action with a 4:00 p.m. home game against NCAA Division II Tiffin University (12-13 overall following its Feb. 11th win over Hillsdale (MI) College).  Live statistics will be provided free of charge.  Click here to view the live stats on your desktop: http://www.sidearmstats.com/malone/mbball/scoreboard.aspx  OR here to view the live stats on your mobile device: http://www.sidearmstats.com/malone/mbball/mobile.aspx

Malone Notes: With his 17-point performance in Saturday's match-up with NDC, Coblentz moved to 26th on the Pioneers' all-time scoring list, now with 1290 career points….Coblentz, who transferred to Malone after one season at the University of Akron, needs just 18 more points to move into the Top 25.