Box Score
FRANKFORT, Ky. -- Despite shooting over 60 percent in the second half, the Ohio Dominican men's basketball team fell late at Kentucky State Tuesday afternoon, 72-70.
The Thorobreds (2-1) jumped out to an early double-digit lead, 21-10, midway through the first half. Ohio Dominican though, responded with a 21-5 run to close the period and take a 31-26 lead into the intermission. The Panthers held KSU scoreless for the final 2:58 of the first half, a span they scored nine consecutive points.
Alek West (Sylvania, Ohio) scored all nine of his points in the first half, while also finishing the game with four rebounds and three assists. Matt Hall (Evanston, Ill.) was a spark off the bench for ODU in the opening half, making all three of his field goal attempts for six points.
Both sides shot over 60 percent from the field in the second half, a 20-minute session that saw KSU outscore ODU 46-39. The Panthers were 17-fo-27 from the field in the second half, while combining with the Thorobreds to shoot 8-for-17 from three-point range.
Ohio Dominican (0-5) scored the first basket off the second half to take its largest lead of the game, seven points, at 33-26. KSU though, rallied with a 10-2 spurt to take a 36-35 advantage at the 17:27 mark.
Eleven of the game's 12 lead changes came in the second half.
After falling behind by as many as eight points with 3:30 remaining, ODU cut its deficit to two points, 70-68, with a Marcus Johnson (Columbus, Ohio) layup with only 35 seconds showing on the game clock.
KSU split a pair of free throws to go in front by three points, but a layup from Zach Szul (Waterville, Ohio) made it 71-70 with two seconds to play. Again, the Thorobreds split a pair of free throws, but after missing the second shot, time expired to secure their second home win of the season.
Sean Marks (Delaware, Ohio) tallied 12 points and a team-high five assists. Off the bench, Nate Webb (Lafayette, Ind.) tied Marks for the team high in scoring, making four-of-six triples for 12 points. Johnson also reached double figures off the bench while leading ODU with eight rebounds and four steals.
Ohio Dominican will now break for the Thanksgiving holiday before returning to Alumni Hall for its home opener against Wilberforce on Monday, Nov. 29. The Panthers and Bulldogs are slated for a 7 p.m. tip.
jestert@ohiodominican.edu
