LEXINGTON, Ky.—Sophomore Alex Jones posted 15 second half points and keyed a late 13-2 Transylvania run in the second half to lead the Pioneers to a 64-61 comeback victory over the Manchester University Spartans Saturday at the Clive M. Beck Center.
"I was very proud of the leadership of our older guys," head coach Brian Lane said. "Even when our offense struggled, they stayed positive kept the energy and we had what was probably our best defensive effort of the season."
With just over four minutes left in the game, Transylvania trailed 56-49, Lane called timeout, and the Pioneers responded with a 13-2 run that sealed the victory for the home team.
Following the timeout, junior Parker Stansberry hit a three-pointer to close to within 56-52 with 3:48 left in the game, as Jones followed with a steal and a layup to pull the Pioneers within two at 56-54 with 3:45 remaining. Following two Spartan free throws, Jones scored six straight for the Pioneers and assisted on a Stansberry bucket that put the Pioneers on top for good at 62-58 with 27 seconds remaining.
Manchester's Blake Brouwer hit a three-pointer with 17.2 seconds remaining to close to within one, 62-61. Jones connected on one free throw and the bonus and then batted away a last-ditch inbounds pass by the Spartans to seal the victory for the Pioneers (5-8, 2-4 HCAC).
For the game, the Pioneers were led by Stansberry who finished with his sixth career double-double including 23 points and 12 rebounds. Stansberry also posted a career-high five blocks in the win.
Jones finished with 15 points, all in the second half, and seven rebounds, and Sam Sergeant, whose timely rebounds often let the Pioneers get out in transition, finished with seven points, seven assists and six rebounds. Tristan Burgess finished with nine points, all from behind-the-arc.
The Pioneers only turned the ball over five times in Saturday's win, as freshman point guard Sam Sergeant finished with seven points and six assists with only one turnover. The Pioneers forced nine Manchester turnovers in Saturday's win.
"Parker proved why he is an all-conference player and Alex played a great game," Lane said. "[Alex]did a lot of things well today that helped our offense improve in the second half and I can't say enough about Sam."
At halftime, the Pioneers trailed 27-20 after shooting just 6-for-28 (21 percent) in the first half. Transylvania bounced back in the second half shooting 16-for-29 (55 percent) including four for nine (44 percent) from three-point range.
The Pioneers host Earlham College (0-13, 0-6 HCAC) Wednesday in another Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference contest. Wednesday's game is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.