The Malone University men's basketball team registered a 71-65 home victory over visiting Davis & Elkins College on Saturday afternoon after outscoring the Senators by a 17-3 margin over the final five minutes of the contest.

The Pioneers struggled on the offensive end throughout much of the first 20 minutes as the squad connected on just 26.9% (seven of 26) of its first-half field goals, including only three of 12 attempts from beyond the three-point arc.

An over five-minute scoring drought for the hosts resulted in Malone trailing by as many as 14 points at 31-17.  A pair of free throws by guard Nate Sheppard ended the scoreless stretch with 3:17 remaining in the opening stanza. 

Malone trimmed the margin to 34-25 at intermission, but the Senators would maintain a single-digit advantage for a majority of the second period.

A pair of free throws by the Senators' Kevin Simpson put Davis & Elkins in front 62-54 with 5:15 to play.  However, the Pioneers would ratchet up the defensive intensity from that point on.  Malone rattled off 15 unanswered points following Simpson's free throws.

Following a technical foul call on the Davis & Elkins' bench, Pioneer guard Ty Jordan stepped to the foul line and sank both of his attempts to trim the Senators' lead to 62-60 with 4:17 showing on the clock.

Malone forward Djuro Pantos then tied the game at 62-62 after converting a lay-up off a nice pass from forward Mitchell Spotleson. 

The Pioneers' first lead of the second half then came at the 3:30 mark as Pantos split a pair of free throws, putting Malone ahead by one.

A lay-up by Pioneer forward Marcus Ernst and four Jordan free throws would stretch the Pioneer lead to 69-62 with 10 ticks to go.

The Senators' Donte Doleman would hit a three-pointer to make it 69-65 with four ticks remaining, but it was too little, too late as Sheppard stepped to the line and sank two more foul shots in the final moments to cement the Pioneers' come-from-behind victory.

Malone improved to 6-2 overall and 1-1 in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference with the victory while Davis & Elkins fell to 1-5 overall and 0-2 in conference play.
 
Game Highlights
-After its slow start, Malone got on track offensively in the second half, outscoring Davis Elkins 46-31 and shooting 55.6% from the field and 50% from three-point range
-Davis & Elkins shot 43.8% overall and connected on 12 of 29 (41.4%) treys
-Malone made 30 of its 41 free throws in the contest (73.2%); The 30 made free throws marked the most in a single game since December of 2011 when the Pioneers sank 31 in a win over Ohio Christian
-Malone's seven made three-pointers marked its lowest total of the season thus far
-The Pioneers held a 32-29 edge in total rebounds, including a 10-7 advantage on the offensive glass
-Malone forced 19 turnovers and grabbed seven steals
-31 of Davis & Elkins' 65 points came from its bench
 
Malone Individual Highlights
-Sheppard registered 23 points, marking the fourth time this year he has surpassed the 20-point mark
-Jordan followed with 22 points, five assists, three steals and three rebounds
-In the first start of his Pioneer career, forward Rholy Mouliom recorded nine points, three assists, three steals and two boards
-Pantos notched seven points and seven rebounds
-Spotleson added six points and seven rebounds; He is now nine points away from reaching 1,000 for his career
 
Davis & Elkins Individual Highlights
-Simpson came off the bench to register a team-high 17 points and five assists
-Emre Yildirim also reached double figures off the Senators' bench, notching 12 points and four rebounds before fouling out
-Jordan Mcelveen and Edmund Parker each followed with nine points
 
Up Next:
After playing seven of its first eight games at Osborne Hall, Malone will hit the road for a pair of conference contests next week, starting on Thursday with a 7:30 pm showdown with Hillsdale College.