MOUNT OLIVE, N.C. – The Emory & Henry University Men's Basketball Team (4-1) continued its winning ways, pushing its winning streak to four games, as the Wasps defeated the University of Mount Olive (2-3) in the final game of the Pickle Classic Saturday evening. E&H fought off a late Trojan rally to take the win by a 94-90 final margin.
The Basics
FINAL SCORE – Emory & Henry 94, Mount Olive 90
LOCATION – Mount Olive, North Carolina
VENUE – Kornegay Arena
RECORDS – Emory & Henry (4-1, 0-0 SAC); Mount Olive (2-3, 0-0 Carolinas)
How It Happened
- The squads went back and forth to begin the contest and the Wasps held on to a close 9-8 lead following the opening five minutes of play. Emory & Henry pushed their lead out to 17-11 at the 13:38 mark on a made layup by junior guard Jackson Crawford (Daleville, Va.), but the Trojans struck back with six consecutive points to take the lead at 18-17. The score stood tied at 23-23 with 9:12 remaining in the first, until the Wasps caught fire with a 12-0 run capped off by a three from senior guard Yaturi Bolton (Charleston, S.C.) to give them the 35-23 advantage. UMO answered with a 10-3 run of their own over the following four minutes to pull back within five at 38-33. An old-fashioned three-point play by senior forward Assad Madassalia (Bronx, N.Y.) just before the horn gave the visitors from Emory a 44-36 lead heading into the locker room.
- The Wasps started hot in the second stanza as they saw their margin grow to its largest of the game at 67-49 with 15:54 left to play in the second half. The Trojans slowly chipped away at the deficit, but E&H still held a 78-62 advantage at the 7:37 mark. The Mount Olive offense finally came alive in the latter stages of the frame as the home team went on a 12-0 run over the next three minutes to climb back into the contest at 78-74 with 4:30 to play. The Trojans would get no closer however, as the Wasps had an answer for every UMO bucket and kept the host team at bay on their way to the 94-90 victory to finish as the only 2-0 team in the Pickle Classic.
Emory & Henry Individual Leaders
- Crawford led the Wasps offensively for the second straight game as he went for 23 points, three assists and a rebound. Sophomore guard Korbin Dixon (Milton, Ontario, CANADA) had 16 points, five boards and a trio of helpers while junior guard Jaden Andrew (St. John's, ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA) added 13 points, seven assists, four rebounds and a pair of steals.
- Freshman guard Melchior Hughes (Geneva, SWITZERLAND) posted his first collegiate double-double with 13 points, 11 rebounds and three assists. Freshman guard Donnie Morris (Tampa, Fla.) recorded 12 points, seven rebounds, two steals and an assist off of the bench for the Wasps in the win.
Mount Olive Individual Leaders
- Matt Kirby registered a game-high 26 points, five rebounds and three assists off the bench for the Trojans while Raul Perez had a double-double with 18 points and 11 rebounds.
- Christopher Brown went for 12 points, nine rebounds, two steals and an assist. Jefferson McLamb added 11 points, two steals, one rebound and an assist in the loss.
A Deeper Look
- The Wasps went 29-for-63 (46.0%) from the field while the Trojans shot just 36.1% (26-for-72). E&H knocked down 11 shots (36.7%) from beyond the three-point arc compared to only five (21.7%) for Mount Olive.
- UMO outrebounded Emory & Henry by a 47-42 margin, and tallied 38 points in the paint while the Wasps managed 34.
- Emory & Henry was 25-for-32 (78.1%) from the charity stripe compared to 71.7% (33-for-46) for Mount Olive.
- The Trojan bench outscored the Emory & Henry reserves by a 46-22 margin.
- The Wasps were effective on the fastbreak, putting up 26 points to just 19 for the hosts.
- E&H shared the rock effectively as they recorded 21 assists on their made baskets while UMO only had eight helpers.
Up Next
- The Wasps have a week off before they return home to open South Atlantic Conference play against the Trojans of Anderson (S.C.) University on Saturday, November 29. Tip is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. from the John Rutledge King Center.
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