Archived Video Broadcast

The Malone University men's basketball team registered a 71-67 home victory over visiting Trevecca Nazarene University on Saturday afternoon after fighting back from a 10-point halftime deficit. 

The Pioneers fell behind 40-30 at intermission but then outscored the visiting Trojans by a 41-27 margin over the final 20 minutes.

Malone held a 24-20 advantage midway through the opening period before TNU closed out the frame on a 20-6 run.

The Trojans connected on eight of their 10 first-half three-pointers, led by guard Jacob Williams, who went a perfect 5-for-5 from deep.

The Pioneers regrouped in the locker room, quickly fighting back into the contest with a 13-2 surge that put the hosts in front 45-44 just over five minutes into the second period.  Guard Ty Jordan helped fuel the rally by scoring two points and registering assists on all five of the other Malone baskets during the run.

The lead exchanged hands back and forth over the next few minutes before another stretch of Pioneer buckets pushed the Malone lead out to seven at 60-53.

The Trojans would not go away quietly though as six straight TNU points trimmed the margin to just one at 60-59 with five and a half minutes to play.

Forward Djuro Pantos answered back for the Pioneers, scoring Malone's next seven points with a pair of lay-ups and a three-pointer from the top of the key that stretched the hosts' lead back to 67-61 with a little more than two minutes to go.

Trevecca Nazarene's Jacob Williams would then make things interesting by hitting his eighth and ninth three-pointers  of the game on back-to-back trips down the floor to knot the score at 67-67.

However, Pantos came through once again on Malone's next possession as he gathered in a nifty bounce pass from forward Mitchell Spotleson and laid the ball in the hoop to put the Pioneers back on top, 69-67. 

Malone would misfire on the front end of a pair of 1-and-1 opportunities at the foul line in the next few moments.  Despite the missed chances at the charity stripe, Malone's defense held firm, stopping the Trojans on three straight possessions in the final 30 seconds.

Jordan then sank a pair of free throws with 1.4 ticks on the clock to seal the four-point Pioneer victory.

Malone completed a season sweep of Trevecca Nazarene with the win, improving to 10-11 overall and 3-5 in Great Midwest Athletic Conference play.  The  Trojans slipped to 7-16 overall and 2-5 in the conference.
 
Game Highlights
-The Pioneers made just two of 11 treys in the second half, but shot over 80% from inside the arc over the final 20 minutes.  Overall, Malone shot 44.1% (26 of 59) from the field on the afternoon, 30% (nine of 30) from deep and 62.5% (10 of 16) from the line.
-Trevecca Nazarene, meanwhile, made 34.9% (22 of 63) of its shot attempts, 54.5% (12 of 22) of its three-pointers and 68.8% (11 of 16) of its foul shots
-Malone held a 41-39 edge on the boards, registered four blocked shots and outscored TNU by a 32-20 margin in the paint
 
Malone Individual Highlights
-Pantos finished with a season-high 20 points. He also grabbed a team-high nine rebounds
-Spotleson notched 16 points, eight rebounds and three assists
-Jordan filled up the stat sheet with 14 points, nine assists, seven rebounds and three steals
-Forward Nate Sheppard added 10 points, seven rebounds and two blocks
-Guard Christian Graves contributed six points, six rebounds and four assists
 
Trevecca Nazarene Individual Highlights
-Williams hit nine of 11 three-pointers on his way to a game-high 27 points.  He also recorded five rebounds, two assists and two steals
-Forward Devin Whitfield tallied 13 points and five rebounds
-Guard Donovan Donaldson registered 11 points
 
Up Next:
Malone will continue G-MAC play on Wednesday with a 7:00 p.m. contest against Ohio Valley University.