INDIANAPOLIS -- The UIndy men's basketball team lived up to its billing as the highest scoring team in the Great Lakes Valley Conference in defeating Mt. Vernon Nazarene, 108-74, on Saturday night at Nicoson Hall.
The Greyhounds (5-2) were led by
Darius Adams with 23 points, six assists, four rebounds and four steals, while
Wilbur O'Neal and
Cory Zackery each added 19 points.
DeWann Squires contributed 15 points against the Cougars (5-4).
Zackery hit 5-of-10 three-pointers as UIndy connected on a season-high 14 three-pointers on the way to shooting 51.6 percent overall (33-64). The Hounds also converted 28-of-34 free throws (.824).
UIndy forced 26 turnovers that resulted in 39 points, while also converting 18 offensive rebounds into 18 second-chance points.
The Cougars were led by Danil Zakhlebnyy with 15 points and Adam Grimm with 14 points.
The Greyhounds raced to an early lead, 10-2, after Squires scored seven in a row on a four-point play and then converted all three freebies after being fouled behind the arc. The Hounds' lead swelled to 11, 15-4, after a three-pointer by Zackery and offensive put-back by O'Neal with 14:26 to go.
The Cougars responded with an 11-0 run over 2:59 to tie the game, 15-15, with 11:03 on the clock, but UIndy came right back. The Greyhounds scored a quick six in a row to ignite a 30-6 run over 7:46 to build the lead to 24, 45-21, with 2:50 left in the half after a jumper just inside the arc by
Adrian Moss. The Greyhounds maintained that lead, 51-27, at intermission after a free throw by
Brennan McElroy with four seconds left in the half.
The Greyhounds hit seven three-pointers and 12-of-14 free throws in the opening half, while holding the Cougars to 39.1 percent (9-23) shooting overall. The Greyhounds also forced 17 first-half turnovers into 24 points.
UIndy built the lead to as many as 40 points, 85-45, in the second half to hold off the Cougars for the victory.
The Greyhounds take a break for final exams this week and then head to Boca Raton, Fla., on Dec. 18-19 for the Marriott Holiday Classic against Barry and host Lynn.
Q&A with Head Coach Stan Gouard
What did you think of your team's performance?
"I thought offensively we were able to move the basketball and get guys open shots. When we got a lead late in the first half though, we started to go back to some bad habits. We still have to improve on our defensive effort. We gave up too many points in the second half.
"Overall, I am happy with the win and the way some of our guys played tonight. I think the guys who haven't played much did a decent job coming into the game. Guys like McElroy and
Miles Mitchell did a good job when their number was called."
What do you think of your team heading to Florida next weekend?
"We are still struggling on the defensive end of the court. We can score. No one is selfish and we find the open man. I'm disappointed in where we are from a team defensive standpoint. Our big guys get in foul trouble too much because our guards aren't doing a good job on the ball.
"We've got a lot of work to do. We are behind the eight ball a little bit in where I want the team to be and we've just got to keep working. We're a young basketball team and I've got to stay patient with these guys. Our leadership is getting better and
Nate Blank coming back will help that. Once Nate and
Cody Sarrazin, who is sick, get back it will be the first time we've had our whole team available. After we take care of finals and our business in the classroom I'll have a few days to practice with the whole team and I'm excited about that.
