Men's Basketball earns tight win over Michigan-Dearborn

(Rochester Hills, MI) - The Rochester Christian men's basketball team returned the Garth Pleasant Arena for a WHAC matchup against the Michigan-Dearborn Wolverines. The Warriors first half advantage was enough to give RCU the 80-78 win. 

RCU improves to 15-7 overall on the season, while moving to 10-6 in WHAC play. . 

FIRST HALF

The first half saw the two teams combine for 72 points in the half, which included the Wolverines starting with a 7-2 run. The Warriors picked themselves right back with Darnell Turner Jr. scoring seven points in a span of a minute, followed by a Linden Holder three-pointer. A minute and a half scoring drought would occur before another big RCU run put the Warriors up 18-9.

Coming out of the media timeout, RCU hit multiple shots during a 11-6 run, with Mason Parker getting in on the scoring. The two teams continued to battle back-and-forth hitting shots on both sides. Tymias Williams had back-to-back plays at the two-minute mark with dunks, including an alley-oop off the backboard from Linden Holder. 

SECOND HALF

UMD began the second half hitting a three-pointer to bring the game to within five points early on. Linden Holder and Dustin Farrow hit baskets before UMD went on a 9-2 run. A UMD three-pointer evened the game at 53, before they hit a second one and going up by a trio of points. RCU called a timeout following a Jamil Mashhour three-pointer to bring the score to a two point difference. 

The two teams traded buckets to begin the final 10 minutes of play. The Warriors would go on a 14-2 run, giving themselves a four-point lead and forcing a Dearborn timeout. Tyler Allen and James Fisher would keep RCU in the lead with jumpers. UMD would hit a pair of late three's to give them a shot at a buzzer beater which would hit the rim and fall out. 

TOP PERFORMERS

Four different Warriors tallied double figures in points, with Tymias Williams and Darnell Turner Jr. each scoring 16, Linden Holder getting 14 points, and Tyler Allen putting up 10 points. Holder led the passing with five assists. 

James Fisher brought down eight rebounds in the game to lead RCU, with Tymias Williams bringing down six. Darnell Turner Jr. created four turnovers in the game and added a pair of blocks as well. 

UP NEXT

The Warriors return to the court on Wednesday, February 4, with a WHAC matchup against Lourdes University at 7:30 PM.