(WILMINGTON, Ohio) – Thomas More College senior guard Sawyer Pauly (Crescent Springs, Ky./Covington Catholic) scored a game-high 21 points tonight (Monday, December 19, 2016), but it wasn't enough as the Saints fell, 69-65, to Wilmington College in a non-conference game on Herman Court inside Fred Raizk Arena in Wilmington, Ohio.
With the loss, the Saints fall to 6-3 and with the win, the Quakers improve to 4-6.
Thomas More jumped out to an early 7-0 lead with 18:06 to play in the first half when sophomore guard Damion King (Winchester, Ky./George Rogers Clark) made a three-pointer. Wilmington used a 6-2 run to cut the lead to 8-6 when Andrew Russell made a lay-up with 15:07 to play in the opening half. Sophomore guard Brandon Horne (Louisville, Ky./Male) made a lay-up with 14:28 to play in the half to cap a 5-0 run and extend the Saints' lead to 13-6. The Quakers responded with a 26-14 run to build a 32-27 lead when Nathan Scott made a jumper with 4:13 to play in the first half. Thomas More then went on a 9-0 run capped by two free-throws by first-year center Gavin Jameson (New Castle, Ky./Henry County) to take a 36-32 lead with 16-seconds remaining in the first half. Wilmington's Scott made two free-throws with six-seconds to play to cut the Saints' lead to 36-34 at half.
Junior forward/center Simon Clifford (Louisville, Ky./DuPont Manual) opened the second half with a jumper and increase the Saints' lead to 38-34 at the 19:09 mark of the half. Wilmington put together an 18-11 run capped by a Noah Chatham lay-up to give the Quakers a 52-49 lead with 10:27 to play in the second. Thomas More answered with an 11-6 run to retake the lead at 60-58 with 3:35 to play in the game when sophomore guard Ryne Callahan (Morehead, Ky./Rowan County) made a jumper. Wilmington would then close out the game on an 11-5 run for the 69-65 victory.
Thomas More out-rebounded the Quakers 44-36, while out-scoring them 32-30 in the paint and 11-9 in second chance points.
Clifford joined Pauly in double-figure scoring with 10 points, while King just missed double-figures with nine. Horne led the team on the boards a game-high nine rebounds, while Pauly and sophomore forward Ralph Stone (Shelbyville, Ky./Martha Layne Collins) each added seven rebounds. King led the Saints in assists with five.
Thomas More is idle until December 31 when it travels to Franklin, Indiana to play Franklin College at 3 p.m.