BUFFALO, NY – The Medaille College Men's Basketball team looked to defend their home court against conference rival La Roche College. The matchup between the two teams was the first since the Mavs ended the Redhawk's season in the 2017 AMCC Championship game.
The Mavericks, off to a slow start, entered the game (3-5 overall; 1-2 AMCC) and are coming off two tough conference losses to Hilbert College and Penn State Altoona. The Redhawks looked to continue their push to another conference championship and have jumped out to a hot start with a record of (5-3 overall; 3-0 AMCC).
Hollenbeck led all players with (24) points.
A common theme for the Mavericks this season has been their slow starts, that was not the case against La Roche. Medaille abused the three-point line with three makes from Mike Hollenbeck (Ontario, NY), Brandon Roach (Buffalo, NY), and Justice Fagan (Batavia, NY) that put the team up (9-2).
La Roche did mount a small comeback with two straight buckets to get themselves back within three.
The hot shooting from behind the arc continued when Meghale Ford (Laurel, MD) wanted to join the party. Ford connected on two straight threes and earned three more points on the next possession the old-fashioned way. Ford drove to the basket, fought through contact, and got the shot to go while being fouled. The free throw was good and Medaille saw their lead grow to (12).
With the intensity of this rivalry one should not expect the Redhawks to go away quietly. Trailing (18-6) the Redhawks sharpshooter, Zach Gould, found he bottom of the net from three on two straight possessions to cut the deficit in half.
After trading a few baskets, the score sat at (25-18). The early star, Meghale Ford, kept his hot hand going as he again connected on a layup while being fouled. After converting the free throw, the lead went to ten.
The Mavericks held an eight-point lead when La Roche looked to make their move. The Redhawks went on (6-0) run and cut the once ten-point lead to just two.
In need of a response after La Roche regained some of the momentum the Mavs went right back to the three-point line. Roach's turn was up and he popped out to the top of the key, received a pass from Fagan and buried the three to break the Redhawk run.
With under one-minute remaining in the first half the Mavs saw their lead increase to (14). The last possession La Roche had in first half resulted in a much needed three-points as Austin Hannes connected on a three.
The teams ran into the locker rooms with Medaille holding a (46-35) lead. Medaille gained their advantage in large part to hot outside shooting. The Mavs shot a remarkable (77.8%) from the three-point line resulting in (21) of their (46) points. Strong defense led to extra possessions for the offense as the team forced (14) Redhawk turnovers.
Ford led all scorers in the half with (13) points, going (4-6) from the field including a perfect (2-2) from behind the arc. Helping out in the scoring department was Hollenbeck and Roach who both contributed (9) points each.
La Roche as a team shot an decent (44.8%) from the floor but made just (4) three-pointers. The team also committed (15) fouls which helped Medaille get to the free throw line (15) times, making (11) of the attempts. The Redhawks were led by Zach Gould with (7) points and Arnes Bajgora and Trell Thomas adding in (6) each.
Medaille came out in the second half and maintained the lead they built in the first (20) minutes of play. After a Sean Wilson (East Aurora, NY) free throw the lead grew to its largest of the game at (15).
La Roche showed signs of life and on multiple occasions and got the lead down to ten points but could not get over that hump early on in the half as they attempted to mount their comeback.
The fouls accumulated early for the Mavericks and with just about (13) minutes to go in the game the Redhawks were already in the bonus. With the help of some free throws and a Darrell Barron layup the Redhawks cracked into the Mavs double digit lead and the score sat at (60-51).
The game continued to be back a forth, the Mavs were unable to put the Redhawks away and the Redhawks were unable to get within striking distance. La Roche cut the lead to seven on two separate occasions but could not get any closer.
Ford tallied (17) points including (13) in the first half.
With just under six minutes remaining the Mavs held a (9) point lead until Kirk Hawkins (Laurel, MD) got to the basket and converted on a layup attempt while getting fouled. He hit the free throw and extended the lead back to (12).
The nail in the coffin came for La Roche when their second leading scorer Ray Quan Phifer fouled out, down by (14) with just (6) points on the day.
Medaille built and maintained a comfortable lead and their defense didn't allow La Roche any shot to get back into it and they walked away with a (92-78) win.
The Mavericks were consistent tallying (46) points in each half and shot (48.3%) from the field.
Mike Hollenbeck was a constant force in the middle of the Maverick offense leading all scorers with (24) points and (7) rebounds. Following Hollenbeck was Ford who tacked on (17) points to go with (3) assists. Hawkins and Roach each tallied (11) points.
The Redhawks had four players in double figures, led by Dion Ethridge with (14) points with Gould and Bajgora contributing (13) each.
Medaille earned their second conference win on the season and their third straight against the Redhawks dating back to last season. The team saw their record improve to (4-5 overall; 2-2 AMCC). The loss for La Roche was their first in AMCC play and their record now sits at (5-4 overall; 3-1 AMCC).
The Mavs will get (13) days to recover until they head down to Oberlin College for the Oberlin College Holiday Classic. Medaille will face off with Muskingum University on December 29th, time to be determined.