Plymouth, Ind. – Five players scored in double figures as the Raiders hit the 100 point mark for the third time this season with a 101-96 win at Ancilla College Monday night. The win keeps the Raiders a top of the conference with a 14-5 overall record and a 7-1 in league play. The defending conference champions fall to 12-7 overall and 5-4 in the league.
The game ended up coming down to the wire after the Chargers came back from a 16 point deficit with 5:20 remaining. The late surge by the Chargers made it just a three point ball game with 2:40 left. With the lead again just being just three with 12 seconds remaining, freshman guard Jake Zandi (Murrieta, CA) sealed the victory with two free throws on the next Raider possession.
Free throw shooting ended up being a huge factor in the victory. There was a total of 58 fouls called, six players fouled out, and 78 free throws shot. The Raiders connected on 36 free throws (at a 77% clip) compared to 22 made for Ancilla.
Ancilla jumped out to an 8-0 lead and after their fourth three, 14-4 just three and a half minutes into the game. Just five minutes later though, a 17-5 run gave the Raiders their first lead of the ball game. Another three by Ancilla would tie the game at 25 with 9:24 left in the half, but the Chargers couldn't get the lead back. Sammie Ryans (Kentwood, MI) connected on the team's ninth three of the half to give his team a 49-35 advantage just seven seconds before the clock hit zero.
David Hearns (Hazel Park, MI) scored 23 points (his fifth time going over 20) to lead the Raiders, including making 10 of 12 from the line. Ryans, the team's leading scorer, finished with 22, including five more triples, making it the fifth time this season he had five or more threes. William Otole (Grand Rapids, MI) hit four of the Raiders 13 total three's, finishing with 14 points to go along with his 5 assists and 5 rebounds. Camren Spicer (Grand Rapids, MI) had a game high 7 assists to go with his 12 points while D'Avery Moore (Kentwood, MI) had his first career double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds.
The Raiders will try and stay atop the MCCAA-Western conference as they do battle with Jackson College on Wednesday at home. Jackson has won two in a row after beating Kellogg 101-88 Monday night. They are 5-4 in the conference including a loss to the Raiders in their first meeting back on January 5th, 93-82. Game time is set for 7:30 PM.
