CANTON, Ohio - The Malone University men's basketball team fell short to the Lake Erie College Storm on senior day 73-59. The Pioneers fall to 14-12 on the season while the Storm improve to 19-7. In the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC), Malone drops to 7-11 while Lake Erie jumps to 13-5.
 
Seniors Jake Bruns and Emmanuel Oladeru were honored prior to the start of the game for their accomplishments both in the classroom and on the court for Malone.
 
The first half was a close one as both teams kept the score close throughout the period. Josiah Pierre found himself open for a successful layup to give Malone a 12-7 lead with 13:14 left in the half. Lake Erie caught up after being behind and eventually took the lead 19-17 at 6:04. Both teams continued to battle until the final four seconds when Logan Forbes made a layup on the fastbreak to give the Pioneers a 29-25 lead at the half.
 
Malone's defensive efforts in the first half cost the Storm to go 21.1% (8-for-38) from the field and 5.3% (1-for-19) from beyond the arc. The Pioneers offense had a decent run as they finished 46.2% (12-for-26) in the field.  
 
In the second half, Malone started off on the right foot, but Lake Erie had momentum and took the lead with 13:57 remaining. Nic Williams was successful on his two free throws to cut the Storm's lead to 42-40. Not long after, Pierre made a defensive rebound to lead Williams to a layup and tied the game 42 all with 10:09 on the clock. As the game continued, Lake Erie managed to get ahead 54-48 with 6:50 left in the period. The Pioneers tried a last-ditch effort with a dunk by Pierre at 4:34 to close the deficit, but the Storm managed to stay ahead and pulled away to a 14-point victory, 73-59.
 
Lake Erie outscored the Pioneers 48-30 in the second half. Malone struggled offensively in the second half, as they went 40% (10-for-25) from the field, and 12.5% (1-for-8) behind the arc. The Storm finally got going from deep and shot 61.5% (16-of-26) in total for the second half.
 
Pierre (16), Williams (13), and Tate Aljancic (10) finished the game combining for a total of 39 points in the matchup. Pierre, Aljancic, and Austin Niekamp all tied with seven rebounds each for the Pioneers. Pierre was credited with a team-high three assists.
 
The Malone University men's basketball team has one more opportunity to defend Osborne Hall in their last regular season home game against the Ohio Dominican University Panthers. Tip-off is at 7:30 P.M.