The Hood College men's basketball team erased a seven-point deficit in the second half on its way to a 64-61 win over Widener at BB&T Arena.
The win improved the Blazers to 5-1 on the year and 1-1 in the Middle Atlantic Conference Commonwealth.
The Pride's David Nicholson hit a 3-pointer to make it 47-40 with under 12 minutes to play, but Hood scored the next eight points to take the lead. Jared Ruiz (Frederick, Md. / Oakdale) was fouled and hit both free throws. Tanner Ruths (Stephens City, Va. / Sherando) stole the ball after the in-bounds pass to cut the deficit to 47-44. After Daniel Wegener (Falling Waters, W.Va. / Broadfording Christian (Md.)) brought the Blazers within a point with 9:49 to play, Davon Hill (Clinton, Md. / Potomac School) was fouled and sank both free throws for a 48-47 lead.
Hood trailed again, 51-49, with under seven minutes to play, but Hill converted a 3-point play to give the Blazers the lead for good.
Hood's freshmen carried much of the scoring load early, before its lone senior took over late in the game. Ruiz scored a team-high 17 points. Wegener notched his first career double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Hill overcame a rocky first half to score 14 of his 16 points in the second half. He led the team with five assists.
Trevor Magnuski (Mechanicsburg, Pa. / Cumberland Valley) matched Wegener's 10 rebounds to help Hood to a 45-41 edge on the backboards.
The first half was a back-and-forth battle that featured six ties and 12 lead changes. Hood led 27-23 after two Wegener free throws with 6:43 on the clock, but a 9-1 spurt by the Pride helped them take a 32-31 lead into halftime.
Sardayah Sambo led all players with 21 points and 11 rebounds for the Pride. Nicholson did all of his scoring on 3-point field goals, shooting 6-of-14 behind the arc on his way to 18 points. Laron Byrd had six assists.
While Widener hit 10 threes in the game, Hood used a 30-16 edge on points in the paint to take home the victory.
Hood travels to Goucher for a non-conference contest on December 9 at 7:30 p.m.