Walker and Swift Lead Delta Men Get Against KVCC

Kalamazoo, MI -   

Saturday afternoon, the Delta Men's basketball team got revenge against Kalamazoo Valley Community College.  Back in November, the Pioneers lost at home to the Cougars 85-72 but Saturday proved to be a totally different game as the Pioneers got a huge team victory and came out on top 81-75.

The Pioneers got off to a fast start behind freshman forward Virgil Walker.  Walker hit his first four field goals and made four straight shots from the free throw line to give the Pioneers an early 17-15 lead.  Two three point field goals by Mason Vanpamel and an old fashioned three point play by Allante Wheeler pushed the Pioneer lead to 35-24 with five minutes left in the half.  The Cougars made a late first half push to cut into the lead and the Pioneers headed into halftime up 42-38.

Coming out of halftime, Jonathan Swift led the charge for the Pioneers by stepping up the defensive pressure.  He converted two straight steals into baskets and the Pioneers built their lead to 52-39.  Jovon Thomason then scored six straight points to push the lead to 64-49 with ten minutes to play.  The Cougars would not go down without a fight and cut the Pioneer lead to 76-74 with less than two minutes to play.  Key free throws by Trey Newsham and Vanpamel proved to be the difference down the stretch and sealed the victory for the Pioneers 81-75.    

The Pioneers had four guys in double figures.  They were led by Walker with 17 points, 11 rebounds, and 3 steals.  Swift had 16 points, 5 assists, and 4 steals.  Thomason and Newsham finished with 13 and 10 points, respectively.  

 "Today was a very impressive team victory.  We hadn't played a game in several weeks so it was nice to see all the hard work pay off," said head coach Carlos McMath.  "Our coaching staff has been challenging guys to step up and we saw some results today.  I really liked the leadership that Jon showed this afternoon and the aggressiveness Virgil played with down low."

The Delta Men's basketball team (3-3) will be back in action on Saturday.  They will host Lake Michigan in Pioneer Gymnasium.  Game time will be at 3:00.