The Malone University men's basketball team travels to Walsh University on Wednesday, February 26 at 7:30 pm for their regular season finale. The Pioneers currently hold the number five seed according to the new Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC)
point rating system. Eight teams will make the conference tournament, where the quarterfinal games will be hosted by the higher seed.
Follow Along:
Malone @ Walsh (56th Annual Mayor's Cup Game)
Wednesday, February 26 at 7:30 pm
Live Video/Stats:
https://portal.stretchinternet.com/walsh/
Previous Matchup:
The crosstown rivals met just last week as Malone pulled off a 77-76 comeback victory against the Cavaliers.
Sehill Mouliom knocked down a pair of free throws with just one second left to cap a 26-point performance.
Malone Team Notes: Schedule |
Roster |
Statistics
Record: 16-11 (10-7 G-MAC)
The Pioneers have won five of their last six games, the best string of games Malone men's basketball has been on in the year 2020. The squad will travel up Market Avenue to North Canton, Ohio to square off with the Cavaliers winners of three straight. All the momentum is on the Pioneers' side after an overtime win in their most recent game 88-86 over Lake Erie.
In games last week, Malone put up some impressive statistical numbers. One key to victory last Monday over Walsh was free throw shooting. The Pioneers shot 16-of-18 from the charity stripe, the third-best free throw percentage game of the season. They also recorded more than 20 assists in both games versus Ohio Dominican and Lake Erie last week.
Individually,
Daylan Haynie recorded a career-high 13 assists in Saturday's overtime win over Lake Erie. The senior point guard also had zero turnovers. It was the first game in his career with double-digit assists and zero turnovers. In his last three games, Haynie is averaging 7.7 assists per game.
Fellow senior
Sehill Mouliom was named G-MAC and Malone Athlete of the Week following his fantastic performances in a trio of home wins. Mouliom averaged 19.3 points and 3.6 rebounds per game last week and shot 72.7% (24-for-33) from the field. He upped his scoring average by .8 points up to 13 per game in the last week. Mouliom is fourth in the Midwest Region with a field goal percentage of 57.9% this season.
Sophomore guard
Eli Ramsey played a career-high 33 minutes in Saturday's win over Lake Erie. Ramsey scored 11 points, including nine first half points, and brought down nine rebounds. In the same game,
Marcus Ernst scored 17 points and grabbed 10 total boards, his ninth double-double of the season.
The first time around versus Walsh, getting
Jaret Majestic off his game was a major priority of the Cavaliers. In his career playing at Walsh, Majestic scores an average of 18.3 points and knocks down an average of five shots from distance per game.
Walsh Team Notes: Schedule |
Roster |
Statistics
Record: 20-6 (11-5 G-MAC)
Walsh enters play against Malone Wednesday on a three-game losing skid, the most losses in a row the Cavaliers have had since the 2016-17 season. However, all three games were on the road. Walsh returns home for Wednesday's game where they hold a record of 13-1 this season.
As a team, the Cavaliers are fifth in the nation in three-point field goal percentage (41.9%). Something that haunted Walsh is the first matchup between the teams was free throw shooting, however Walsh is ninth in the country in fewest personal fouls per game. The Cavaliers continue to hold the number one scoring offense (84.7 PPG) and number two scoring defense (67.7 PPG) in the conference.
In the first game, all five starters for Walsh reached double-figure scoring. Darryl Straughter led the way with 21 points, four shots from beyond the arc and a perfect 7-for-7 from the free throw line. Straughter is averaging a team-high 17.3 points per game.
JT Shumate scored 12 points last Monday night, and might be back to his old form. Shumate has scored in double figures in his previous three games after going on a stretch of scoring under 10 in six of seven contests. The Pioneers were able to hold Shumate to just 5-of-15 shooting.
Caleb Canter and Christian Montague hardly left the floor in last week's game, registering 39 and 38 minutes, respectively. Canter finished with 12 points and seven rebounds on 5-of-7 shooting. Canter scored well above his average of 5.5 points per game and depth was a major issue as he comes into Wednesday's game only averaging 23.8 minutes per game. Montague scored 14 points and collected eight rebounds, but struggled with taking care of the basketball (five turnovers).
Senior Mark Mokros burnt the Pioneers from deep twice in last Monday's game, scoring 15 total points. On the season, Mokros shoots 45.7% from deep, second-best in the conference only behind his teammate, Straughter.
