ATHENS, Tenn. – The CIU Ram's men's basketball team almost managed to finish the month of January unscathed but dropped a game on the road to Tennesee Wesleyan on Thursday night. CIU (10-4) beat the Bulldogs (10-6) by twenty (95-75) earlier in the season but fell 73-69 in their latest meeting with TWU. The Rams now cling to the second-place spot in the Appalachian Athletic Conference but finished January with a 5-1 record during the month.
How It Happened:
First Half: CIU 37 TWU 29: CIU and TWU played a back and forth contest for much of the first half. With 11:10 remaining in the half Julio Rodriguez knocked down two 3-pointers, and Bryce Causey added one of his own to help CIU on a 9-0 run going up 24-15. Another 3-pointer by Rodriguez a few possessions later helped the Rams to their largest lead of the half, 29-19. The Bulldogs would make a small run, but back-to-back triples from Skyler McKinney gave CIU the 37-29 advantage at halftime.
Second Half: TWU 73 CIU 69: The Rams again took a 10-point lead 42-32 after another McKinney 3-pointer early in the second half. The Bulldogs finally stole back the lead with 6:43 remaining going up 58-55. CIU then tied the game with just over 2:00 minutes left to play on a Jalen Brinson bucket bringing the score to 62-62. CIU then rallied and went ahead 66-64 on a Corey Benton score, but it would be the Ram's last advantage of the contest. CIU could not close the game out in the final seconds and fell 73-69.
Game Notes:
- Corey Benton led the Rams in scoring with 17 points. Benton has remarkably scored in double-digits in every game so far this season.
- Skyler McKinney had 16 points going 4-6 from 3-point range.
- Elijah Spalding led the Rams in rebounding with seven boards and 11 points.
- Freshman Julio Rodriguez hit three first-half 3-pointers, accounting for his nine total points.
- CIU received much of their scoring from deep sinking 10 triples as a team.
What Coach Stockman is saying:
"We did not end up with the result we wanted, but I was happy our team was able to get back on the floor and play basketball again. I am looking forward to getting better in practice and preparing for the next game."
Up Next:
CIU will host Bluefield College on February 4th at 7 PM.