WC men’s basketball opens season with road split

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CINCINNATI — The Wilmington College men’s basketball team rebounded Saturday from a loss Friday to defeat Mount St. Joseph University 83-69 at the MSJ gym.

Jeffery Mansfield and Noah Dado keyed a 10-0 WC run late in the first half to break a 31-31 tie and put WC on top 41-31.

Wilmington then opened the second half with the first six points and put the game away.

Both teams shot better than 40 percent from the field with Wilmington connecting on 31-of-63 (49.2 percent) from the floor compared to 20-of-29 (40.8 percent) for MSJ. The Lions made three more three-pointers and five more free throws, but couldn’t overcome a 38-22 rebounding edge for the Quakers.

Individually, Abdul Kanu turned in a career-high 23 points on 10-of-17 shooting to go along with six rebounds. Colin Myers had 15 points including three three-pointers while Mansfield and DaeShawn Jackson also finished in double figures in scoring. Dado had seven points and six rebounds off the bench.

“We had a much better competitive spirit (Saturday), rebounded better and definitely shared the ball at a much higher level,” WC head coach K.C. Hunt said. “It was a good bounce back game for us.”

Wilmington (1-1) returns to action Nov. 23 with a trip to the College of Wooster.

On Friday, Wilmington was defeated by Transylvania 87-78 in the season-opener at Mount St. Joseph University.

The Pioneers, who were picked as the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference preseason favorite, scored the game’s first 13 points. Mansfield scored the Fightin’ Quakers’ first bucket of the season just over five minutes into the game and followed that with two free throws. Matt Smith, fellow Wilmington High School graduate, added a three-pointer at the 12:38 mark to get Wilmington within six.

Transylvania pushed the lead to as many as 25 points in the second half. The Quakers, who forced 31 turnovers, were able to close within six late in the game but could not get any closer.

Both team shots in the 40s from the field with Wilmington making one more field goal than Transylvania, but the Pioneers held an advantage from distance, connecting on 9-of-18 triples compared to 5-of-28 for the Quakers.

The rebounds and turnover statistics were completely lopsided with Transylvania holding a 44-28 advantage in rebounding while Wilmington forced 31 Pioneer turnovers and had 14 steals. A total of 53 fouls were called in the game.

Individually, Mansfield poured in a career-high 19 points with nine of those coming at the free throw line while Jackson scored 14 points and had six rebounds in 24 minutes. Kanu, Myers and Payton Smith all recorded three steals.

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