ANGOLA, Ind. – The Trine men's basketball team defeated Alma, 81-66, in a Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association conference game Saturday afternoon in Hershey Hall.

Trine's defense held Alma to 14 points below its season average of 80. The Thunder was able to capitalize on the Scots 18 turnovers, converting them into 19 points. Kyle Dodson (Centerville, Ohio / Centerville) paced the Thunder with his second double-double of the season. He had 24 points (10-of-19 shooting), a career-high 11 rebounds, one assist and two steals.

Will Dixon (Indianapolis, Ind. / Zionsville) added 22 points of his own to add to the offense. He scored 18 of those points in the second half. Dixon's one steal today moved him into sole possession of sixth place for steals in team history with 155. Myles Copeland (Toledo, Ohio / St. John's) shot 7-of-9 from the field for 20 points.

Trine improved to 12-11 overall and 7-5 in the MIAA. Alma fell to 11-12 overall and 7-5 in conference play. The Thunder and Scots are now tied for third in the MIAA. If the current standings hold, Alma would own the tiebreaker over Trine for MIAA Tournament seeding by virtue of its victory over Calvin.

Trine led Alma 31-27 going into the half. A 12-3 run over the span of 6:04 by Trine opened up a 10-point lead. Dodson scored 10 of the 12 points during Trine's run. The Thunder defense converted eight points off the Scots' 10 turnovers in the first half. Dodson took charge offensively for Trine, scoring 18 points in the first half. He knocked down three treys.

Alma retook the lead in the opening minutes of the second half. Trine quickly took back the lead with four-straight points by Ellis Cummings (Ottawa Hills, Ohio / Ottawa Hills) to start a 10-1 run. The Thunder never trailed the rest of the game.

Trine expanded its lead to double digits, only letting Alma come within single digits once the rest of the way. A 9-0 run that ended with Langston Johnson's  (Elkhart, Ind. / Elkhart Central) three-pointer expanded the lead to 60-44 with 8:58 to play. The Thunder shot 58.1 percent (18-of-31) from the floor in the second half.

The Thunder returns to action Wednesday Feb. 15 for senior night against an MIAA foe Olivet.  Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Prior to the game Trine will honor Dixon, Adam Ciszewski (Sacramento, Calif. / Bella Vista), Luke Wenger (Howell, Mich. / Livingston Christian) and Adison Daub (Corunna, Ind. / DeKalb).

Article courtesy Cody Konieczki, Trine University, Communications New Media '17