ADRIAN, Mich. -- A hot shooting performance in the second half led the Trine men's basketball team to a 68-54 victory over Adrian in MIAA-action Wednesday evening at the Merrillat Center.
The Thunder shot 62.5 percent (15-of-24) from the field in the second half, including a 7-of-10 (70 percent) effort from three-point range, to turn a five-point halftime lead into the double-digit victory. Senior Adison Daub (Corunna, Ind. / DeKalb) paced the barrage from deep, scoring a career-high 15 points on 5-of-7 shooting from three-point range. All five of the senior's treys came in the second half. He also dished out three assists. Trine evened its overall record at 7-7 and is 2-1 in conference play. Adrian fell to 6-8 overall, 0-3 in conference play.
Myles Copeland (Toledo, Ohio / St. John's) led the Thunder in scoring with 18 points on an efficient 8-of-13 effort from the floor. Copeland added nine rebounds and a pair of blocks. The sophomore scored 14 of his points in the second half. Will Dixon (Indianapolis, Ind. / Zionsville) added 14 points and dished out a team-high four assists.
Adrian was led by MIAA-leading scorer Davonte Harris, who scored 17 points. Trine's defense held Harris, who was averaging 25 points per game entering tonight's action, to a 7-of-22 shooting effort. Anthony Cannon added 12 points on 6-of-9 shooting. The Bulldogs shot 42 percent from the field (24-of-57) and connected on just 3-of-15 (20 percent) attempts from long range.
The first half was a tight affair throughout, with neither team leading by more than seven. The Thunder bench contributed 15 points in the first half, including two threes by Langston Johnson (Elkhart, Ind. / Elkhart Central), to help Trine take a 29-24 lead at the break.
A quick 7-1 spurt, punctuated by Daub's first three, opened up Trine's first double-digit lead at 36-25 early in the second half. Adrian cut the score back to 41-35 with 12:55 to play, but the Thunder answered with a 14-0 run over the next 4:21.
Daub and Dixon traded threes twice to account for four straight makes from long range in the run. A Copeland bucket made the score 55-35 with 8:34 to play. Adrian would get no closer than the game's final margin the rest of the night as Harris knocked down two threes in the final minute.
Trine held a 35-27 rebounding edge despite playing without leading rebounder Ellis Cummings. Jared Dishop (Napoleon, Ohio / Napoleon) chipped in four rebounds in the first start of his collegiate career.
The Thunder return to action Saturday, Jan. 14 when the team welcomes Hope to Hershey Hall for a 3 p.m. tip-off. The game is part of Trine's "Free-for-All" Community Day, which features free admission, giveaways and more. For more information on the "Free-for-All", visit THIS PAGE.