OLIVET, MICH.—Trine's men's basketball team pulled away from Olivet late to earn an 82-70 victory over the Comets Saturday afternoon at The Cutler Event Center.
A 17-2 run spanning from the 8:25 mark until 1:11 remained in the second half turned a one-point deficit into a comfortable 14-point cushion and put the game out of reach. Will Dixon (Indianapolis, Ind,/Zionsville) led four Thunder in double-figures with a game-high 27 points on 9-of-20 shooting and dished out four assists. He hit 4-of-6 attempts from long-distance. R.J. Haas led the Comets with 18 points on 8-of-16 shooting and added five rebounds. The Thunder turned 14 Olivet turnovers into 23 points. Trine concludes the regular-season 15-10 overall and 8-6 in the MIAA, good enough for fourth in the league. Olivet finishes the season 5-20 overall and 3-11 in the league.
Tyler Good (Swanton, Ohio/Evergreen) notched 16 points and six rebounds for Trine. Jared Holmquist (Reed City, Mich./Reed City) and Nick Tatu (Clarkston, Mich./Clarkston) each scored 12 points for the Thunder. Trine shot 46 percent from the field (25-of-55) and hit 9-of-16 treys (56 percent).
Kevin Woodson came off the bench to notch 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting for Olivet. Blake Krum added 14 points on 5-of-8 shooting. The Comets shot 52 percent overall (27-of-52) and 60 percent from deep (9-of-15).
The contest was a see-saw affair through the first 30-plus minutes, with eight ties and seven lead-changes before Trine's deciding run. Haas converted a layup-and-one to give the Comets a 60-59 lead with 8:53 on the clock, before Dixon responded with a deep three to give Trine the lead right back at 62-60. An Alex Mayo layup knotted the score at 62-apiece before the Thunder ripped off a 14-0 run to put the game out of reach.
Dixon stayed hot, knocking down a pair of threes to give him nine-straight points for the Thunder. Good followed by hitting a tough shot in the lane with the shot-clock winding down to extend the lead to eight. Holmquist then drew a foul and knocked down a pair of free throws to make the score 72-62 with 2:49 remaining.
The Thunder grabbed a pair of key offensive boards to keep possession after misses, and Good hit four-straight free throws to cap the run and make it 76-62 with 1:11 on the clock. Trine buckled down defensively during the 14-0 run, coming away with three turnovers and forcing four misses for seven straight empty Olivet possessions.
Free throws proved to be a big difference in the contest. The Comets got to the line just seven times, hitting all seven attempts. Trine got to the line 27 times, and connected on 23 of their free tosses (85 percent).
Trine will face Hope in the semifinals of the MIAA Tournament this Wednesday, Feb. 26. Tip-off time has yet to be determined.