SHOOTING WOES HURT DELTA MEN IN LOSS

Auburn Hills, Michigan -  

Saturday afternoon, the Delta College men's basketball team traveled to Auburn Hills to face the 20^th ranked Oakland Community College Raiders.  The Pioneers came into the matchup looking to avenge an earlier loss to the Raiders.  The loss that occurred back on January 11^th was a tight game in which the Pioneers squandered a lead late to the Raiders.  The Pioneers made adjustments heading into the rematch but couldn't knock down shots and Oakland won another close contest 80-69.                        

The first eight minutes of the game went back and forth and the lead changed hands six times.  Mason Vanpamel's three pointer tied the game back 12-12 at the twelve minute mark.  Over the next six minutes, the Raiders went on a 9-0 run and pushed their lead to 21-12.  A Devin Smith three point play cut the Oakland lead to 24-21 with 2:35 left in the half.  The final two minutes of the half went back and forth and the Raiders held a slim 30-27 lead heading into the break.                   

Oakland began the second half on an 8-0 run and built their lead up to 11 with 17:30 left.  The Pioneers then went on a 17-4 run and took a 44-42 lead with 13:30 remaining in the half.  Highlighting the Pioneer run was two three pointers by Trey Newsham and eight points by Allante Wheeler.  Both teams continued to trade baskets and midway through the half the score was 52-52.  The Raiders then turned up the defensive intensity and converted turnovers into transition baskets pushing their lead back to 8 points with six minutes remaining.  A steal and layup by Jonathan Swift cut the lead down to 66-62 at the three minute mark but the Pioneers couldn't convert enough shots down the stretch to push them over the hump.  For the game, the Raiders made 29-33 (89%) of their free throws to carry them to the victory.                   

"We are getting high quality shots but we just aren't making them," said head coach Carlos McMath.  "We shot 80% (28-35) from the free throw line and that kept us in the ball game.  On the other hand, we were only 32% (11-34) from inside the paint and that is what hurt us the most."    

Jovon Thomason led the Pioneers with 12 points and 7 rebounds.  Allante Wheeler had 11 points and 6 rebounds.  Trey Newsham also added 11 points.            

"We really need to strive for consistency," said McMath.  "If we can consistently knock down shots from the floor, make free throws, and limit our turnovers then we will be a tough team to beat.  Until we start to do that game in and game out, we will continue to see inconsistent results."

The Delta Men's basketball team (9-10, 5-6) will travel to face the Henry Ford Hawks (7-13, 4-6) on Wednesday evening.  This is a pivotal matchup for both teams as they are fighting for playoff position in the MCCAA Eastern Division.  The Pioneers won the first game 82-78.  Game time is 7:00 pm.