ANGOLA, IND. -- Sophomore Maurice Hunter (Monroe, Mich./Monroe) scored 10 points and grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds to record his seventh double-double of the season, but it would not be enough as the Trine University men's basketball team fell to Kalamazoo (Mich.) College, 70-63, in a Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association game and regular-season home finale at the MTI Center.
Trine struggled as a team on the night in field goal percentage, shooting just 33.8 percent (22-of-65) overall and 30.8 percent (four-of-13) from three-point range.
Four of the five starters for the Thunder scored in double figures, led by junior Myles Copeland (Perrysburg, Ohio/Toledo St. John's) who scored 16 points on five-of-19 shooting (26.3 percent), including six-of-10 (60.0 percent) from the free-throw line. Junior Pete Smith (Bristol, Ind./Northridge) and sophomore Langston Johnson (Elkhart, Ind./Elkhart Central) were tied for second with 13 points each. Hunter rounded out the high scorers with his 10 points to go along with his 13 boards.
Trine's (11-13, 7-6 MIAA) shooting struggles from the field started right from the opening tip as the Thunder missed their first seven shots before scoring their first points on a triple by Johnson at the 14:03 mark. Prior to the Johnson made three-pointer, Kalamazoo (7-17, 2-11 MIAA) took advantage and scored 10 straight points to lead, 10-3.
But the Johnson tre started a streak of 16 straight points for Trine that ended in a 16-10 advantage following a jumper by Johnson with a little more than eight minutes to go in the first half. Trine equaled its six-point lead a few minutes later on another three-pointer by Johnson to make the score, 21-15, but the Hornets answered with a 10-2 scoring run of their own to regain the lead with a score of 25-23.
Trine came right back to even the score at 25-25 with a pair of free-throws by Copeland, but KZOO ended the period outscoring the Thunder, 6-1, in the final 2:26 to take a 31-26 margin into the locker rooms.
KZOO continued its run in the second half with six more points to record its first double-digit lead of the contest, 37-26, with 17:34 to play. The Hornets went on to lead by as many as 13 points, 45-32, with 12:53 remaining when Trine began to rally. A layup by Hunter ignited a 16-2 run that gave the Thunder a slim 49-48 edge at the 7:44 mark.
The teams traded leads over the next few minutes before KZOO finally took control of the game with a 9-0 run with the contest tied at 51-51, resulting in a 60-51 margin with 2:41 to play. Trine got to within six points on multiple occasions in the final minutes, but KZOO sealed the game at the free-throw line en route to the 70-63 final.
KZOO ended the game shooting 47.8 percent (22-of-46) as a team and was led in scoring by Jimmy Paprocki with a game-high 24 points.
Trine will conclude the regular season with a trip to Alma, Mich. on Saturday, Feb. 17 for a MIAA matchup against Alma College. Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m.