ALBION, MICH. -- Senior forward Myles Copeland (Perrysburg, Ohio/Toledo St. John's) recorded game-highs of 16 points and 10 rebounds to help lead the Trine University men's basketball team to a 79-53 win against Kenyon College as part of the Albion (Mich.) College Tournament in Albion, Mich.
Trine led by nine points at the half, but then outscored Kenyon, 43-26, in the second half while shooting 50.0 percent (18-of-36) from the floor en route to the 26-point victory.
Copeland scored his 16 points on seven-of-14 shooting (50.0 percent) and eight of his 10 boards came on the defensive glass. The Thunder had one other player score in double figures in junior guard Langston Johnson (Elkhart, Ind./Elkhart Central) who scored 14 points on seven-of-12 shooting (58.3 percent).
Both team's offenses got off to a slow start in the game. Kenyon (0-2) led, 7-3, when Trine (2-0) went on a 10-3 scoring run that ended on a layup by Johnson that gave the Thunder a 13-10 advantage with 9:53 to play in the first half. With the score tied at 13-13, the Lords went on a two-minute scoring drought which allowed Trine to put some distance between themselves and Kenyon and led, 18-13, at the 6:43 mark following a three-point play by Copeland.
Kenyon came back to tie the game on two ocassions with the last one being a 26-26 stalemate, but Trine never gave up the lead the rest of the period and worked its way out to a nine-point advantage at the intermission, 36-27.
Trine began to pull away in the second half and recorded its first 20-point margin with 11:26 to go in the game when sophomore Maurice Scott, Jr. (South Bend, Ind./Riley) connected on a three-pointer to make the score, 57-37.
The Thunder went on to lead by as many as 28 points, 75-47, thanks to a layup by junior Jason Clune (Meadville, Pa./Meadville) with just under two-and-a-half minutes to go. Trine maintained its 20-plus point advantage the rest of the half and cruised to the 79-53 final.
Trine will conclude the two-day Albion Tournament tomorrow (Saturday, Nov. 17) when it takes on Capital (Ohio) University at 1 p.m. in Albion, Mich.