December 4, 2007

 

     Montreat, NC—On the heels of a tough loss at the hands of AAC frontrunner Bluefield College, the Bryan College Lions headed to Montreat, NC to take on a talented Montreat squad who was voted to a second place spot in the AAC Pre-Season Coaches poll. Both teams were 1-1 in Appalachian Athletic Conference play and looking to get some momentum rolling as they headed deeper into their seasons.

     The Lions played well offensively in the early going, jumping out to a 39-30 lead a few minutes before halftime, but squandered the lead, trailing 42-41 at the break. The story of the second half was one of poor defensive effort the visiting Lions.

     When Bryan cooled off offensively, the Cavaliers got hot, shooting 63% from the floor in the second half. “We had a tough time defending their penetration, and we tried to make some adjustments which led to us defending poorly in the post as well,” said Don Rekoske.  “You have to give Montreat credit though, they really have been shooting the ball well their last 3 or 4 ballgames.”  Montreat's 57% shooting on the night was the highest percentage Bryan has allowed all season long.

     The Lions have found their success on the defensive end of the floor this year, holding all their opponents to less than 45% shooting, and 6 teams to less than 40%, but defense was their downfall on this night, eventually losing the contest 87-75.

     The Lions wasted a solid offensive effort, putting forth a very balanced attack which on most nights would have been good enough to produce a win. “This was the best we’ve shot the basketball all year long,” said Rekoske. “It’s frustrating to lose a game when you play so well offensively, but we didn’t defend and that will hurt us every time.”

     Offensively the Lions got good performances from Cody Christopher who had 14 points while Kyle Terry and Lamarr Shorts had 12 points a piece. Scott Newton again had double digit points, dropping 10, while Mike Lytle had 9 points to go with a season high 14 assists.

     The Lions will take the floor again on Thursday night at home when they’ll face off with the Crusaders of Tennessee Temple University from Chattanooga, TN.