Thomas More College’s men’s basketball team fell 101-67 to NCAA Division I member Eastern Kentucky University Wednesday at McBrayer Arena in Richmond.
With the loss, the Saints fall to 1-2 on the season while the Colonels improve to 5-1.
Thomas More took an early 8-4 lead when junior forward/center Simon Clifford (Louisville, Ky./duPont Manual) made a jumper with 17:56 to play in the first half. EKU answered with an 11-3 run capped by a Jarelle Reischel lay-up with 15:02 to play in the half to give the Colonels a 15-11 lead.
The Saints responded with an 8-3 run to take a 19-18 lead with 12:19 to play in the opening half when freshman guard Damion King (Winchester, Ky./George Rogers Clark) made a jumper. The Colonels used a 7-0 run to build a 25-19 lead when K.J. Bluford made a three-pointer with 10:35 to play in the first half. Freshman center Junior Stockwell (Florence, Ky./Boone County) had a tip-in with 7:40 to play in the half to cap a 10-5 run that cut the lead to 30-29. EKU closed out the half on a 21-6 run to take a 51-35 lead at halftime when Jayle Babb-Harrison made a three-pointer with 35-seconds to play in the half.
Eastern Kentucky opened the second half on a 35-20 run to build an 86-55 lead with 6:02 to play in the game when Reischel scored on a tip-in. Thomas More used a 7-0 run to cut the lead to 86-62 when sophomore forward Cameron Fitts (Spencer County, Ky./Spencer County) made two free-throws with 3:32 to play in the game. That would be as close as Thomas More would come as EKU closed out the game on a 15-5 run to win the game 101-67.
Stockwell led the Saints in scoring with 11 points, while junior guard Sawyer Pauly (Crescent Springs, Ky./Covington Catholic) and sophomore forward Austin Young (Campbellsburg, Ky./Henry County) each added nine points. Clifford and sophomore guard Daniel Williams (Louisville, Ky./Jeffersonville) led the Saints on the boards with five rebounds each, while Pauly and freshman guard Ryne Callahan (Morehead, Ky./Rowan County) led the team in assists with four each.
The Saints return to action on Saturday when they travel to Danville to play in-state rival Centre College at 3 p.m.
From TMC Athletics