CINCINNATI, Ohio - This past weekend your Mount St. Joseph University Men's Basketball team hosted the 2022 Lauren Hill Tip-Off Classic. The Lions welcomed Albion College, University of Chicago, and Muskingum University to the Harrington Center. The Lions first matched up against the Fighting Muskies of Muskingum on Saturday night followed by taking on the Maroons of Chicago on Sunday afternoon.
The Lions earned their first victory of the season Saturday night taking down Muskingum 71-53. Freshman Kelvin Turner led the way with 21 points. In the Lions second contest they would fall just short by a score of 64-59. Sophomore Luke Collinsworth led the way for the Lions in the defeat scoring 19 points while adding 6 rebounds.
GAME ONE:Â Â Â MOUNT - 71 Â Â Â MUSKINGUM - 53
In the first half, the Lions got off to a hot start to begin play. After a pair of buckets from Collinsworth the Lions held an early 9-3 lead. Following Collinsworth was Turner who added a layup and a pair of threes to propel the Lions ahead 17-8. Muskingum would not go away however, trimming the Lions lead to just 2 roughly halfway through the first half.
A pair of threes from Dayne Gardner and Jack Kolar would get the Lions back on track. Gardner and Turner would add two more buckets before the Muskies could find the net giving the Lions a 27-15 lead with 7:34 remaining in the half. The Muskies would trim the lead again but, The Mount would head into halftime with a solid 34-27 lead.Â
To begin the second half, the Lions again came out of the gates strong. The Lions started the 2nd half on a 15-3 run including 6 points from Collinsworth and Jack Kolar to give the Lions a 49-30 advantage. The Lions continued to control the pace adding to their lead again. Halfway through the 2nd half the Lions held a 60-36 lead. Through the final 10 minutes the Lions never lost control defeating the Fighting Muskies of Muskingum 71-53.
Freshman Kelvin Turner was dominant for The Mount erupting for 21 points in his home debut. Luke Collinsworth was also impressive scoring 15 points while grabbing 5 rebounds.
GAME TWO: Â Â Â MOUNT - 59 Â Â Â CHICAGO - 64
To begin play, Chicago got off to a hot start. The Maroons went on a 11-4 run to start the game but, a trio of buckets from 3 different freshman got the Lions back on track. A layup from Nate Kratzer, and a pair of threes from Trey Dunn and Kelvin Turner gave the Lions a 12-11 lead. In a tightly contested matchup the Lions trailed by just 2 with 8:21 remaining in the first half. The Lions' freshman continued to impress and keep the Lions in the game.
After the Maroons took a 6 point lead with 7 minutes to go, Turner would hit a three followed by a pair of jumpers from Dunn to give The Mount a 1 point lead. But, heading into halftime the Lions trailed Chicago 37-32.
In the second half, the Lions and Maroons continued to trade buckets. But, the Lions would finally start tear down the Chicago lead halfway through the 2nd half. A three point bucket from Turner and a layup from Collinsworth trimmed the Chicago lead to just 1 with 8:06 left to play. But, the Maroons were able to hold on to their lead defeating the Lions 64-59.
Luke Collinsworth lead the way for the Lions scoring 19 points while grabbing 6 rebounds. Kelvin Turner was again impressive adding 10 points and 3 steals.
UP NEXT: Your Mount St. Joseph Lions are back in action on Tuesday, November 22nd when the Lions travel to Springfield, Ohio to take on Wittenberg. The game is scheduled to tip off at 7:30pm.
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