NEW CONCORD — Muskingum jumped out to a double-digit lead early in the first half and held on to defeat the Wilmington College men’s basketball team 69-63 in Ohio Athletic Conference action Wednesday evening.
Wilmington made one more field goal (23-22) with both teams connecting on nine three-pointers. Muskingum had a 16 for 26 shooting performance at the free throw line while Wilmington was 8 for 13.
For Wilmington, Abdul Kanu poured in 20 points with 13 rebounds while Andrew Clark scored 10. Izaiah Cathey tallied a season-high eight points off the bench.
Luken Hill led Muskingum with 19 points and 15 rebounds for a double-double.
The Quakers continue OAC play at John Carroll University 2 p.m. Saturday.
Clark opened the game with a layup and after Hill tied the game on Muskingum’s first possession, Abdul Kanu connected from deep to give the Quakers a 5-2 lead. Unfortunately for the visitors, the Muskies went on a 16-2 run over five minutes to build a double-digit advantage.
Wilmington stayed within striking distance, however, as the Quakers didn’t allow a point over the final 3:47 of the half. During that time, WC scored the final six points of the half to go into the locker room down 33-29.
The break didn’t stop the Quaker run as, after a Kanu free throw, Jayden Lewis intercepted a pass and converted a layup to get within a point. WC took a brief 44-43 lead on a Lucas Doty layup at the 14:02 mark, but Muskingum answered with a 15-4 run to go back up double digits. One more time, the visitors got back to within a basket (59-57) and had three possessions to tie or take the lead, but Duane Davis hit a triple to put the hosts ahead by five. Muskingum hit free throws down the stretch to earn its first victory of the season.
