By Nicholas Huenefeld/Owens Sports Information
Elyria, Ohio---Seven players scored in double figures as the Express men's basketball team routed Lorain County Community College 118-79 on the road tonight.
Bikramjit Gill (Our Ascension of the Lord/Toronto, Ontario, Canada) andKenny Jones (Clay/South Bend, Ind.) each scored a team-high 15 points, while Antoine Benford (East English Village/Detroit, Mich.) andEdmond Early Jr. (Thurgood Marshall/Dayton, Ohio) each had 14 points.
The Express jumped out to a 68-40 lead at halftime. They shot 26-for-49 (53.1 percent) in the half, along with a 7-for-12 (58.3 percent) performance from 3-point range. They had 21 assists on 26 made field goals and forced 16 turnovers from Lorain County.
In that first half, Early had 12 points, while Gill had 11. Jones had nine points and seven rebounds in the half, as well.
In overall scoring, Andy Bachman (North Side/Fort Wayne, Ind.) andJohn Murry (North Central/Indianapolis, Ind.) each had 13, while Martez Asberry (Douglas Academy/Detroit, Mich.) added 10.
In the second half, nobody had more than eight points, while everyone had at least two points except one player for the Express. Bachman and Benford each had a team-high eight second half points. Early Jr. had six second half assists, while Benford had five rebounds in the half.
Overall, the Express shot 47-for-88 (53.4 percent) from the field, 11-for-27 (40.7 percent) from 3-point range and 13-for-16 (81.2 percent) from the foul line. They outrebounded Lorain County 48-39, while also out-producing them in assists (40-11), steals (16-11), blocks (6-0), points off turnovers (40-8), points in the paint (68-48) and bench points (65-16). They led by as many as 39, which was the final margin.
The team's 40 assists was a season-high, and it was one short of tying the single game school record.
In assists, Shaakir Lindsey (Teaneck/Teaneck, N.J.) broke his season-high with nine, while Early (seven) tied his season-high and Asberry (five) broke his season-high.
In fact, Early set or tied season-highs in scoring, assists and steals (5) tonight. His steal total was a team-high tonight.
Jones led the team with nine rebounds, while Gill and Benford each had eight.
Marvin Coleman led Lorain County with 23 points and 13 rebounds, while Justin Green added 14 and Ouddi Hamden had 13.
The Express (12-3) are now off until a Dec. 30 road rematch at 7:30 p.m. against No. 7 Mott Community College, who handed the Express an 89-79 loss on Nov. 26. The team will take a six game winning streak into that matchup, while they have now also won 9 of 10.
Notes
The Express had six players with three or more assists and six players with four or more rebounds. Their 47 field goals was the second most in a single game this year, their 11 3-point field goals made was the fifth time they reached double-figures in that category this year and they produced their third highest single game field goal percentage of the season.