EMORY, Va. – The Emory & Henry University Men's Basketball Team (7-5) got the new year underway in winning fashion Friday afternoon, defeating non-conference foe Johnson C. Smith University (3-6). The Wasps had five different players score in double digits on their way to an 87-69 victory over the visiting Golden Bulls
The Basics
FINAL SCORE – Emory & Henry 87, Johnson C. Smith 69
LOCATION – Emory, Virginia
VENUE – John Rutledge King Center
RECORDS – Emory & Henry (7-5, 2-4 SAC); Johnson C. Smith (3-6, 0-1 CIAA)
How It Happened
- The Wasps were the aggressors to begin the contest and a three-point bucket from junior guard Jackson Crawford (Daleville, Va.) gave the home team a 12-6 advantage at the first media timeout. The Golden Bulls rallied to pull within a point at 16-15, but the Wasps responded with nine of the next 11 points to push their lead back out to 25-17 at the 9:56 mark of the opening half. The E&H margin grew to double digits for the first time of the afternoon with 3:27 to play on the back of a pair of free throws from Jackson, but Johnson C. Smith managed to close the deficit to nine at 37-28 heading into the locker room at the half.
- Emory & Henry outscored the visitors 10-7 over the opening five minutes of the second stanza and pushed their advantage back out to a dozen at 47-35. JCSU closed the gap to nine once more before the media timeout, but the Wasps struck back with a 16-4 run over the next four points to give them their largest lead of the contest at 66-45. Johnson C. Smith managed to make it an eight-point ballgame at 75-67 with just over two minutes remaining, but that was as close as the visitors would get as the Wasps were solid from the charity stripe down the stretch to earn the 87-69 win.
Emory & Henry Leaders
- Senior forward Assad Madassalia (Brooklyn, N.Y.) had a monster game on the glass for the Wasps as he registered a double-double, pulling down a career-high 17 boards while adding 12 points, four blocks and an assist. The 17 rebounds are the most for a Wasp in a single game since the program made the transition to the Division II level. Sophomore forward Isaac Hymes (Phoenix, Ariz.) finished with a team-high 15 points, eight rebounds and a pair of helpers while Crawford went for 12 points, six assists, one rebound and a block.
- Freshman guard Melchior Hughes (Geneva, SWITZERLAND) contributed 14 points, one rebound, one assist and a block off of the bench for the Wasps. Sophomore guard Korbin Dixon (Milton, Ontario, CANADA) recorded 11 points, six boards, one assist and a steal in the win.
Johnson C. Smith Individual Leaders
- Trey Pettigrew collected a game-high 21 points, six rebounds, two steals and an assist while Jamauri Bryant had 13 points, seven rebounds, three blocks, two assists and a pair of steals.
- Jared Davis posted nine points, three rebounds and a pair of helpers. Bradlee Wolf went for six points and a pair of boards.
A Deeper Look
- Emory & Henry was 50.0 percent (28-for-56) from the field, hitting 10 three-pointers (45.5%). The Wasps went 21-for-32 (65.6%) at the charity stripe.
- Johnson C. Smith finished 24-of-69 (34.8%) overall and was 4-for-19 (21.1%) from deep. The Golden Bulls converted 70.8 percent (17-of-24) of their free throws.
- The Wasps outrebounded JCSU by a 47-35 tally, but the two squads were dead even at 16 second chance points each.
- The Golden Bulls forced 11 turnovers while committing just five and led 16-6 on points off of those turnovers.
- E&H recorded assists on 21 of its 28 made buckets, compared to 13 helpers on 24 baskets for JCSU.
- The Wasps' reserves outscored the Golden Bulls' backups by a 32-19 margin.
Up Next
- Emory & Henry returns to South Atlantic Conference play on Wednesday, January 7 when the Wasps host the Eagles of Carson-Newman University. Tip is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. as the second half of a doubleheader with the women's team.
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