Dec 04, 2013
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ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. – Balance. It's been at the core of the Elizabethtown men's basketball team's success early this season. When Rob McPherson and his high-flying Widener teammates threatened to grab control of Wednesday night's Commonwealth Conference contest midway through the second half, it was balance that prevailed. Five different Blue Jays scored baskets to ignite a 15-2 run, including Tyler Simpkiss, who finished with a career-high 30 points, and Phil Wenger, who came within two assists of a triple double, leading E-town to a 92-89 victory at Thompson Gymnasium.
Elizabethtown (4-3, 1-1 CC) led for large portions of the first half before yielding the lead to Widener (5-2, 0-1 CC) briefly in the final six minutes of the opening stanza. A 3-pointer off the fingertips of Will Schlosser tied it at 31 for the Jays, before Andrew Mantz's layup allowed the hosts to reclaim their lead 5:40 from the break.
The Blue Jays held that lead firmly, building it back to nine with 3:33 left in the half and keeping it there before trotting off to the locker room with a 46-37 advantage.
Dillon Fields started the second half with a mid-range jumper to draw Widener, the nation's seventh-highest scoring offense at 97.3 points per game, within seven. Simpkiss responded with five of his team's next seven points and gave Elizabethtown its largest lead of the game, 53-41, on a fast break layup setup by a Wenger steal.
Before the blue and gray could celebrate its double-digit lead, McPherson almost single-handedly carried the Pride back into the game. The 6-foot-5 senior scored 10 points during a stretch of 16 uninterrupted points for Widener that put them in the driver's seat, 57-53.
These Blue Jays, written off by many within the conference before the season even began, will not give head coach Bob Schlosser 35, 30 or 25 minutes a night. It's 40 minutes. Every night. It's what their coach demands, and it's what they've given. They gave it to 300 fans again Wednesday.
Sophomore Matt Ziegler chirped words of encouragement into Simpkiss' left ear before the two hit the court with 14:45 left. Ziegler pushed Simpkiss to make sure they defended their home court. They both did, with plenty of help from their Blue Jay teammates.
Lee Eckert's 3-point play drew Elizabethtown back to within a point at 57-56, before Ziegler, Simpkiss, Wenger and Will Schlosser all scored baskets to launch a 15-2 run over 2:46 that put the Blue Jays ahead for good.
That's not to say the game didn't have its fair share of drama down the stretch. Widener's explosive offense, which struck for 52-second half points, eventually got back within three on two McPherson freebies with 2:15 to play. E-town refused to let this one slip away, though. Eckert answered McPherson's points with a layup to make it 86-81. After the Pride scored four in a row to get within 86-85, Simpkiss attacked the rim in transition to bump the Jays' edge back to three.
Down 88-87 following another McPherson bucket, David Nicholson forced a turnover under his own basket, feeding the ball to Laron Byrd, who drew a fifth foul on Eckert and went to the foul line with the lead at stake. Byrd was off the mark on both, however, and Elizabethtown remained in front.
Simpkiss and Tommy James buried E-town's final four free throw attempts after the team had shot just 58.6% (17-for-29) up to that point. The result was Fields having to fire up a three for the tie at the buzzer, which came up short. The Blue Jays walked off the court with their first league win of the season and snapped a three-game winless streak against the Pride going back to the 2011-12 season.
Simpkiss, making his second straight start in place of an injured Joe Schwalm, collected his 30 points on 11-of-18 shooting and 5-of-7 at the line. Eckert was 9-of-10 from the floor for 19, as the Jays shot 54.7% (35-of-64), the fourth time in seven games they've shot 50% or better.
Elizabethtown's floor general, Wenger, continued to display the all-around game that makes him one of the best point guards in the conference. Second in all of Division III in total steals (20) coming into Wednesday's game, the Lancaster native swiped three more. He also hit four of his five shots for 10 points to go along with a career-high 10 rebounds and eight assists.
Mantz had seven boads and a pair of blocks for EC, with Schlosser and Ziegler each coming off the bench to score five.
McPherson scored 19 of his game-high 31 points after halftime and did his damage on 10-of-19 shooting. He also hit the most threes (4) and free throws (7) of any player in the game. Frontcourt mate Greg Lawson totaled 12 rebounds and nine points, while Fields scored 20 points and Byrd 10.
E-town must quickly turn its focus to Saturday when archrival Messiah visits Thompson Gymnasium for a 3 p.m. tip. The College will honor Ira R. Herr's induction into the MAC Hall of Fame at halftime of Saturday's game.
Elizabethtown (4-3, 1-1 CC) led for large portions of the first half before yielding the lead to Widener (5-2, 0-1 CC) briefly in the final six minutes of the opening stanza. A 3-pointer off the fingertips of Will Schlosser tied it at 31 for the Jays, before Andrew Mantz's layup allowed the hosts to reclaim their lead 5:40 from the break.
The Blue Jays held that lead firmly, building it back to nine with 3:33 left in the half and keeping it there before trotting off to the locker room with a 46-37 advantage.
Dillon Fields started the second half with a mid-range jumper to draw Widener, the nation's seventh-highest scoring offense at 97.3 points per game, within seven. Simpkiss responded with five of his team's next seven points and gave Elizabethtown its largest lead of the game, 53-41, on a fast break layup setup by a Wenger steal.
Before the blue and gray could celebrate its double-digit lead, McPherson almost single-handedly carried the Pride back into the game. The 6-foot-5 senior scored 10 points during a stretch of 16 uninterrupted points for Widener that put them in the driver's seat, 57-53.
These Blue Jays, written off by many within the conference before the season even began, will not give head coach Bob Schlosser 35, 30 or 25 minutes a night. It's 40 minutes. Every night. It's what their coach demands, and it's what they've given. They gave it to 300 fans again Wednesday.
Sophomore Matt Ziegler chirped words of encouragement into Simpkiss' left ear before the two hit the court with 14:45 left. Ziegler pushed Simpkiss to make sure they defended their home court. They both did, with plenty of help from their Blue Jay teammates.
Lee Eckert's 3-point play drew Elizabethtown back to within a point at 57-56, before Ziegler, Simpkiss, Wenger and Will Schlosser all scored baskets to launch a 15-2 run over 2:46 that put the Blue Jays ahead for good.
That's not to say the game didn't have its fair share of drama down the stretch. Widener's explosive offense, which struck for 52-second half points, eventually got back within three on two McPherson freebies with 2:15 to play. E-town refused to let this one slip away, though. Eckert answered McPherson's points with a layup to make it 86-81. After the Pride scored four in a row to get within 86-85, Simpkiss attacked the rim in transition to bump the Jays' edge back to three.
Down 88-87 following another McPherson bucket, David Nicholson forced a turnover under his own basket, feeding the ball to Laron Byrd, who drew a fifth foul on Eckert and went to the foul line with the lead at stake. Byrd was off the mark on both, however, and Elizabethtown remained in front.
Simpkiss and Tommy James buried E-town's final four free throw attempts after the team had shot just 58.6% (17-for-29) up to that point. The result was Fields having to fire up a three for the tie at the buzzer, which came up short. The Blue Jays walked off the court with their first league win of the season and snapped a three-game winless streak against the Pride going back to the 2011-12 season.
Simpkiss, making his second straight start in place of an injured Joe Schwalm, collected his 30 points on 11-of-18 shooting and 5-of-7 at the line. Eckert was 9-of-10 from the floor for 19, as the Jays shot 54.7% (35-of-64), the fourth time in seven games they've shot 50% or better.
Elizabethtown's floor general, Wenger, continued to display the all-around game that makes him one of the best point guards in the conference. Second in all of Division III in total steals (20) coming into Wednesday's game, the Lancaster native swiped three more. He also hit four of his five shots for 10 points to go along with a career-high 10 rebounds and eight assists.
Mantz had seven boads and a pair of blocks for EC, with Schlosser and Ziegler each coming off the bench to score five.
McPherson scored 19 of his game-high 31 points after halftime and did his damage on 10-of-19 shooting. He also hit the most threes (4) and free throws (7) of any player in the game. Frontcourt mate Greg Lawson totaled 12 rebounds and nine points, while Fields scored 20 points and Byrd 10.
E-town must quickly turn its focus to Saturday when archrival Messiah visits Thompson Gymnasium for a 3 p.m. tip. The College will honor Ira R. Herr's induction into the MAC Hall of Fame at halftime of Saturday's game.
