ANGOLA, Ind.-- The 23rd-ranked Trine men's basketball team used a big second half run to pull away from Kalamazoo to earn a 77-59 victory over the Hornets in MIAA-action Saturday afternoon in Hershey Hall.
A 19-3 run over a span of eight minutes turned a three-point Trine lead into a 19-point advantage with 5:35 to play. The Thunder held Kalamazoo to 16 points below its season scoring average entering Saturday's contest. Jared Holmquist (Reed City, Mich./Reed City) scored 30 points on 12-of-24 shooting and grabbed nine rebounds to pace Trine offensively. The senior averaged 28 points per game and shot 58 percent from the floor this week. Demarco Dickerson came off the bench to score 20 points to pace the Hornets. The Thunder improved to 11-2 overall and 1-1 in the MIAA. Kalamazoo is now 1-12 overall, 0-2 in conference play.
Will Dixon (Indianapolis, Ind./Zionsville) added 18 points on 6-of-12 shooting for Trine. Ben Syroka (Toledo, Ohio/Whitmer) filled the stat sheet with seven points, eight rebounds and six assists. Syroka has dished out 18 assists to just one turnover over the last three games.
Kyle Dodson (Centerville, Ohio/Centerville) added nine points, connecting on 3-of-6 from three-point range. Dodson entered the contest 19th in the nation with a 49.2 percent shooting clip from deep.
Trine was able to hold Hornet leading-scorer Chase Baysdell to two points on 1-of-10 shooting. Baysdell entered the game averaging over 16 points per game. Adam Dykema added 10 points for Kalamazoo. The Hornets shot just 17 percent from three-point range (3-of-17).
A dominant first half from Holmquist paced the Thunder to a 40-35 lead at the break. The senior scored 20 points prior to halftime, knocking down 7-fo-13 field goal attempts. A three by Holmquist gave the Thunder the lead for good late in the half. Twelve points for Dickerson kept the Hornets in the game.
Kalamazoo was able to keep pace early into the second half. Four-straight points by Josh Miller cut the score to 46-43 with 13:17 remaining.
From there, the Thunder defense took over to spark the 19-3 surge. Trine held the Hornets without a field for a span of 6:18. The Thunder forced seven turnovers during the deciding stretch of the game. Overall, Trine held Kalamazoo to 30 percent shooting (9-of-30) in the second half.
Threes by Dodson and Tarvis Malone (Toledo, Ohio/St. John's Jesuit) bookended the run. Dodson knocked down two treys during that span. Five different Trine players contributed points on the offensive end during that stretch.
Trine will host Adrian this Wednesday, Jan. 13 at 7:30 p.m. in Hershey Hall. Fans are encouraged to wear white in support of a "White-Out" theme at the game.