Men's Basketball

November 26, 2007

Trinity Rallies to Defeat Hardin-Simmons Monday

San Antonio - The Tiger men's basketball team erased a 16-point first half deficit and a poor free throw shooting night to escape with a 66-64 victory over Hardin-Simmons on Monday night.

Trinity (4-0) trailed by just eight points (35-43) at the half, weathering a blistering offensive pace set by the visitors. 

Hardin-Simmons came out on fire shooting the ball, connecting on its first eight shots.  The team didn't miss until the 13:16 mark, and held a 23-14 lead at the time.  After a layup with 8:09 to play in the half, Hardin-Simmons was 11-17 from the field and led 31-15 in the game. 

Trinity was able to knock 10 points off that lead at one point in the first half, then came out with a 12-5 run to start the second period and make it a 47-48 deficit. 

Despite the comeback, the Tigers still couldn't get the lead away from Hardin-Simmons until a jump shot in the paint tied it at 64-64 with 2:24 to play.  Trinity's only lead to that point was a 1-0 advantage in the opening minute.

Trinity was just 15-33 from the foul line in the game, including key misses down the stretch that could have iced the game.  The Tigers took the lead on a free throw with 1:42 to play, then added another free throw with 26 seconds to go.

With five seconds left and a two-point lead (66-64), Trinity missed two free throws that could have ended the game, giving Hardin-Simmons one last shot.  With a foul to give, the Tigers were able to stop the clock with 0.98 seconds left.  After three timeouts, Hardin-Simmons finally inbounded the ball and Marcus Smith's game-winning three-pointer was halfway into the basket before rimming out. 

Trinity held Hardin-Simmons without a field goal over the final 5:20 of the game, and the visitors missed their final seven shots - including Smith's three at the buzzer.

B.J. Moon led Trinity with 12 points on 4-8 shooting, hitting 3-6 three-pointers.  Nick Polidoroff came off the bench with 10 points and three rebounds in 15 minutes, hitting all four field goal tries.

Mike Gilb and Jonathan Lewis added nine points each, while Charles Houston chipped in with six points.  Lewis also had eight rebounds, while Gilb finished with six boards.  Barrett Koch came off the bench to grab eight rebounds - including some key boards in the final minutes - and dish out three assists to go with a pair of steals.

Patrick Robinson scored eight points for Trinity, and his three capped Trinity's run that brought them to within one point early in the second half.  Robinson also led the team with four assists.

Smith led all players with 22 points on 8-19 shooting, hitting 5-10 three-pointers and handing out three assists.  Mardochee Jean finished with 12 points and eight boards.

After shooting just under 47% in the first half, Hardin-Simmons was held to 34.6% (9-26) shooting in the second - including just 1-8 from three-point range.  Trinity shot 48% in the second half to spur the comeback.

Trinity opens SCAC play this weekend against Austin College on Friday night, followed by a Sunday afternoon game with Colorado College.

B.J. Moon

Nick Polidoroff