ANGOLA, Ind.-- Trine used hot shooting in the second half to pull away from Kalamazoo and earn a 72-60 victory over the Hornets in MIAA-action Saturday afternoon in Hershey Hall.
The Thunder shot 76 percent (16-of-21) from the floor to lead by as much as 19 in the second half. Trine's 24-of-42 (57 percent) shooting clip on the afternoon was the best by any team against the Hornets this season. Jared Holmquist (Reed City, Mich./Reed City) scored 19 points on 7-of-13 shooting to lead the Thunder offensively. Stephen Oliphant and Adam Dykema each scored nine points to lead Kalamazoo. Trine is now 15-6 overall, 8-2 in the MIAA. The Hornets fell to 7-14 overall and 2-8 in conference play.
Will Dixon (Indianapolis, Ind./Zionsville) added 17 points to top the 400-point mark on the season. Dixon's season is the sixth of 400 or more points in the D-III era at Trine. Tyler Good (Swanton, Ohio/Evergreen) added 11 points on a 5-of-6 performance from the floor, while Ben Syroka (Toledo, Ohio/Whitmer) scored nine points and dished out four assists.
Kalamazoo came out firing on all cylinders to race out to a 13-3 lead. All five of the Hornets' starters scored during the opening five minutes. A later 14-2 Trine run gave the Thunder the lead back. Trine took a 30-29 lead into the half.
The game would remain tight until midway through the second half, when the Thunder used an 11-0 run to open up a 15-point lead. Six points from Holmquist, a three by Jake Bagley (Van Wert, Ohio/Van Wert) and a driving layup by Good made the score 58-43 with 8:05 remaining. The Thunder would go on to lead by as much as 19.
Trine returns to action this Wednesday, Feb. 11 at Alma. Tip-off is slated for 7:30 p.m.