KALAMAZOO, Mich.-- Trine pulled away from Kalamazoo late in the first half to cruise to a 71-49 victory over the Hornets in MIAA-action Wednesday night at Anderson Athletic Center.
Will Dixon (Indianapolis, Ind./Zionsville) and Jake Bagley (Van Wert, Ohio/Van Wert) combined for 30 first-half points and played an instrumental role in the Thunder outscoring the Hornets 22-8 over the final 10:30 of the first half. Dixon finished with a game-high 24 points on 10-of-16 shooting, including a 3-of-6 performance from long-distance. Bagley came off the bench to score a career-high 18 points, knocking down 6-of-7 threes. Jake Whitney provided 11 points off the bench to pace Kalamazoo. Trine improves to 9-5 overall and 2-1 in the MIAA. The Hornets fall to 6-8 overall, 1-2 in conference play.
Jared Holmquist (Reed City, Mich./Reed City) added 13 points, while Ben Syroka (Toledo, Ohio/Whitmer) dished out five assists for Trine. The Thunder converted 18 Hornet turnovers into 25 points. Trine shot 54 percent (27-of-50) from the field and knocked down 9-of-18 threes.
Adam Dykema added 10 points for Kalamazoo. The Hornets shot 46 percent from the field (19-of-41), but hit just 7-of-13 (54 percent) of their foul shots. Kalamazoo held a 30-22 edge on the glass.
An old-fashioned three-point play by Dixon gave Trine the lead for good at 13-12 early in the first half. The Hornets kept the game close until the Thunder began to pull away behind Bagley's three-point shooting. The senior knocked down all five of his attempts from three-point range as part of a 7-of-10 Trine performance from long-distance in the first 20 minutes. Dixon and Bagley were a combined 11-of-14 from the field in the first half.
Bagley's final three of the game pushed the Thunder lead above 20 for the first time and gave Trine a 52-29 lead with 12:44 to play. That bucket was part of a 14-4 Thunder surge to start the second half, which effectively put the game out of reach.
Trine returns home to face Alma this Saturday, Jan. 17 in Hershey Hall. Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m.