NASHVILLE – The Trevecca Nazarene University men's basketball team (13-5, 8-2 Great Midwest) took down Lake Erie College (5-14, 3-8 Great Midwest), 81-68, on Saturday afternoon in Trojan Fieldhouse.
Trevecca is 2-8 versus Lake Erie all-time picking up its first win versus the Storm since 1-25-20.
BREAKING IT DOWN
A game the Trojans needed after suffering consecutive losses for the first time all season began with the Storm scoring a pair of free throws. Trevecca responded with a 7-0 run highlighted by five quick points from Jalen Page to capture the lead. The lead they would enjoy for much of the first half until the Storm took it back briefly at 12-11. After two baskets by Jamal Cannady nearly halfway through the half gave the Trojans their largest lead at 24-16, Lake Erie chipped away at the deficit to tie the game at 24-24 with 9:57 to play. The next six minutes saw the visitors lead by as many six points at 35-29 with 4:03 to go, but the Storm would not score again. Eight straight points by Jalen Page (including a buzzer beating shot) gave the Trojans a lead heading into halftime. Jalen Page led all scorers with 24 points at the break and was one of just three Trojans to score in the half. Jamal Cannady had six points and Caleb Terry added seven points to help the Trojans to the 37-35 lead.
Scoring was at a premium in the opening minutes of the second half. The fourth Trojan to score was Peter Lambesis who collected a layup with 17:54 to go. Caleb Terry made a pair of foul shots to give the Trojans a 43-40 lead. The score was tied at 43-43 for almost three minutes before Lake Erie's Damion Williams found the bottom of the net. Lake Erie's 8-0 run was stopped by Lambesis when he connected for a free throw at 13:39. Two 3-pointers by both Drew Blackston and Jamal Cannady closed the Storm lead to just three (54-51) with 8:53 to play. Cannady tied the game at 54-54 after completing a three-point play to switch the momentum. Page collected his first points 14 and a half minutes in the second half to help the Trojans stretch the lead to 66-58. Baskets by Cannady and Lambesis opened up a 12 point advantage for the Trojans before Lake Erie's Jacob Plantz sliced into the lead at the under four media timeout. Page finished off his 31-point night with a jumper with :43 to play to give the Trojans a 81-68 win.
KEY PLAYERS
Jalen Page matched his season-high of 31 points for the third time this season and had eight rebounds. Jamal Cannady finished with 21 points while Caleb Terry added 10 points, seven rebounds and seven blocks. Only six Trojans scored in the game with Lambesis (9), Blackston (6) and Lawrence Brazil III (4) rounding out the scoring.
TEAM TIME
Trevecca shot 48.8% (28-58) from the field and made half its 3-pointers (9-18) and was 72.7% (16-22) from the foul line. Trevecca had the edge in rebounds 39-37, assists 12-11, and blocks 9-4.
UP NEXT
The Trojans visit the University of Findlay (7-10, 4-5 Great Midwest) on Thursday February 1 at 6:30 pm. Trevecca took down Findlay for the first time in school history earlier this season with a 96-90 victory to open conference play on 11-28-23.
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