ANGOLA, IND. -- The Trine University men's basketball team beat Alma (Mich.) College, 92-53, in a first-round game of the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association Tournament at the MTI Center in Angola, Ind.
The Thunder shot 50.0 percent (31-of-62) from the field and got to the free-throw line 28 times and made 23 of those attempts (82.1 percent). Defensively, Trine forced 18 turnovers which led to 26 points.
Individually, sophomore Brent Cox (Kendallville, Ind./East Noble) led all players in scoring with 17 points on six-of-10 shooting (60.0 percent). Junior Nick Bowman (Angola, Ind./Hamilton Southeastern) was second with 16 points and also had a game-high five assists. Junior duo of Bryce Williams (Archbold, Ohio/Archbold) and Mitchell Geller (Huntington, Ind./Huntington North) both scored 15 points and junior Aiden Warzecha (Milford, Mich./Milford) rounded out the double-digit scorers with 11 points to go along with six rebounds and four assists.
Additionally, freshman Emmanuel Mengnanglo (Cotonou, Benin/Amelia Academy) grabbed a game and season-high 10 rebounds.
Trine (15-0) scored the first six points of the contest and later led 21-8 following a jumper by Geller at the 12:34 mark. Alma (2-12) then made a bit of a run with seven answered points to pull to within single digits, 21-15, with just under 10 minutes to go in the first half.
The Thunder answered with an ensuing 5-0 mini run of their own with four of those points scored by Geller, as the home team's lead increased to 11 points, 26-15, with 8:05 to go. Alma later got back to within six points (28-22) when another run by Trine, this time of seven straight points, put the Thunder back in control with a 13-point margin, 35-22, after a three-pointer by Cox.
Trine's lead remained in double figures the rest of the half and increased to as many as 17 points on a dunk by Bowman. The Scots scored a three-pointer before the end of the half to end the scoring by both teams, but Trine maintained a 14-point advantage at halftime, 43-29.
Alma came out of the locker room and scored eight consecutive points to get to within eight points, 45-37, early. After a pair of free-throws by Mengnanglo extended the lead to 10 points, Alma connected on a jumper to make it an eight-point game again, 47-39, with 16:34 left in regulation.
That was a close as Alma got the rest of the way as Trine outscored the Scots, 36-10, in the next 11:14 to pull away and take a 34-point lead thanks to a triple by junior Reese McGinsie (Indianapolis, Ind./Roncalli) that made the score, 83-49, at the 5:20 mark. Following a jumper by Alma on its next offensive possession, Trine went on a 7-0 run that ended in one-of-two free-throws by freshman Mitch Sauber (Horton, Mich./Hanover Horton) and gave the Thunder their largest lead of the game of 39 points, 90-51.
Sauber later connected on two more free-throws to cap the scoring in the game and matched Trine's largest lead with a final score of 92-53.
Trine advances to take on Calvin (Mich.) University on Thursday, Mar. 4 at the MTI Center. The game is scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m.