WINCHESTER, Va. – Five players scored in double figures as Hood College knocked off McDaniel 85-70 in the opening round of the BB&T Tip-Off Tournament hosted by Shenandoah University.
Cameron Cook (Baltimore, Md. / Calvert Hall) poured in a game-high 19 points for the Blazers. The senior hit 6-of-13 from the floor and nailed 4-of-9 from beyond the arc.
The game had five ties and eight lead changes in the first 10 and a half minutes before the Hood defense took control. The Green Terror's Jimmy Cranwell got inside for two to tie the score at 26-26 with 9:39 left in the first half. The Blazers shut down McDaniel over the remainder of the period, forcing the Green Terror to miss its final 10 shots of the half and forcing nine turnovers heading into the intermission.
The defensive stand allowed Hood to close the half with a 10-4 run, punctuated by a three by Justin Bowens (Frederick, Md. / Tuscarora) with one second on the clock to make it 36-30 at the break.
Cook scored seven points during a 13-4 run to start the second half that stretched the Hood lead to 49-34 with 16:50 left in the contest.
The Blazers continued to build the lead and went ahead by 18 after a pair of free throws by Asa Smith (Cheltenham, Md. / Paul VI Catholic (Va.)) made it a 58-40 game three minutes later.
McDaniel fought back into the contest behind the shooting of Timi Tinuoye, who drilled three threes during an 18-6 run for the Green Terror. His final three of the run cut Hood's lead to only six, 64-58, with 7:36 to play.
Matt Galloway (Sterling, Va. / Potomac Falls) answered back for Hood after the Blazers called a timeout. The sophomore took a feed from Noble Cunningham (Washington, D.C. / Christ Church School) and drilled a three to expand the lead back to nine with 7:08 on the game clock.
The Green Terror pulled back to within eight points when Phillip Perry hit a free throw with 4:23 to play, but Cook sank his final three of the night on the Blazers' next possession to build the lead back to double figures at 74-63.
Smith and Galloway came off the bench to combine for 22 of Hood's 29 bench points. Smith went a perfect 8-of-8 from the foul line on his way to 12 points, including 10 in the first half. He also led the team with four assists. Galloway scored all 10 of his points in the second half.
Chris Cook (Mechanicsville, Va. / Lee-Davis) scored 10 points in the game, hitting 2-of-4 field goals and making 7-of-9 free throws. Terell Buyck (District Heights, Md. / Bishop McNamara) played just 15 minutes, but hit 4-of-7 from the field to finish with 10 points.
In addition to leading Hood with 19 points, Cameron Cook paced the team with five rebounds and led all players with four steals.
Reggie Daniels (Abingdon, Md. / Patterson Mill) added three steals as the Blazers made McDaniel pay for its 27 turnovers with 24 points.
In contrast, McDaniel scored just four points off of the Blazers' 19 miscues.
Tinuoye came off the bench to lead the Green Terror with 13 points. Cranwell netted 11 points and Nic Martin added 10.
Both teams shot 46 percent from the floor in the game. Hood hit 81 percent from the foul line (29-of-36), while McDaniel struggled from the charity stripe, sinking just 56 percent (19-of-34).
The Green Terror outrebounded Hood 40-26 in the contest.
With the win, Hood advances to the championship game of the BB&T Tip-Off Tournament on Saturday, November 16 at 8 p.m. The Blazers will face the winner of Friday evening's contest between Shenandoah and Methodist.