Men's Basketball

March 03, 2006

Maryville Eliminates Trinity from NCAA Playoff Race

Clinton, Mississippi - The Tiger men's basketball team was eliminated from the NCAA Playoffs in a 64-83 loss to Maryville (TN) University on Friday night at Mississippi College.

Trinity (20-7) trailed 26-44 at the half after shooting just 37% in the initial 20 minutes, including just 1-9 from three-point range.  Maryville shot over 40% in both halves, including 13-28 (46.4%) from beyond the arc, which was a huge difference in tonight's game.

After falling behind 4-16 to start the game, Trinity went on a 12-2 run to cut the lead to just two points with 8:07 to play until the break.  The Tigers scored just 10 points over the next eight minutes, though, and Maryville built up an 18-point advantage.

In the second half, Maryville continued its hot shooting, but Trinity did mount one final attempt at a comeback.  Down by 27 points with 12:05 remaining, the Tigers went on a 16-1 run during a five minute stretch to cut the lead to just 12 (56-68).  Maryville's offense came back to life, though, rattling off 11 unanswered points to push the lead back over 20, ending the Tiger rally.

Ross Burt led Trinity with 25 points on 8-15 shooting in the game, becoming the team's second player this season to eclipse 1,000 career points.  Burt is the 22nd player in school history to join the 1,000-point club.  His 25 points are tied for the second-most ever in a Trinity playoff game.

Andy Bates also added 10 points - the only other Tiger player in double figures.  Bates moves into 17th on the team's all-time scoring list, and also led the team with eight rebounds in the game.

Casey Hill added eight points and five rebounds in 17 minutes off the bench, while Jay Riola and Brandon York chipped in with seven points each.