MOREHEAD, Ky. – After grabbing two impressive road wins over SMU and No. 18 TCU, the Lipscomb men’s basketball team continued their impressive run with a defensive shutdown over an OVC program.
The Bisons grabbed an 87-55 road victory over the Morehead State Eagles (2-4) Sunday, improving their record to 5-1 on the season.
“What I was most concerned about with our team was the mentality that we took to the floor,” Lipscomb coach Casey Alexander said. “And what I just told them post-game was, I was as pleased as I’ve been in a long time at our effort and desire to just play well.”
Redshirt freshman Ahsan Asadullah led Lipscomb with a 15-point performance. 11 total Bisons registered points in the blowout victory.
“It was good to see [Asadullah] get back in there and contribute,” Alexander said. “He’s given us good minutes, but he’s gone dry scoring it since the Sewanee game to open the season.”
Meanwhile, senior forward Rob Marberry finished second in scoring for Lipscomb. He converted on five of his eight field goal attempts and finished 3-of-4 on free throws for 13 points.
Marberry said that the third-consecutive road win “shows that we’re not just the hometown players.”
“We want to win every game and not just kind of glide through the season,” he said.
The Eagles, who struggled to gain much momentum on either side of the ball, were led by senior forward Lamontray Harris, who scored 15 points. Senior guard A.J. Hicks had a team-high four assists.
The game was close at first. With 11:48 left in the first half, the Bisons led 12-9 after junior guard Djimon Henson sank a layup for the Eagles.
But then the Bisons broke away on a 17-2 run to take a 29-11 lead with just over seven minutes left in the first half. Six different Bison players contributed to the run.
The Eagles tacked on 15 points going into halftime, but the Bisons kept their offensive efficiency going with 19 of their own.
The Eagles started out aggressively in the second half, including five unanswered points at the onset. Harris continued his team-leading performance for the Eagles and scored six of the nine Morehead State points in the first three minutes of action.
But while all happened, Lipscomb continued rattling off shots, including five points from junior guard Michael Buckland in direct response to the 5-0 start from the Eagles. As the clock ticked below 17 minutes, the Bisons’ defense returned to dominant fashion as Lipscomb went on a 9-2 run into the final 12 minutes. They led 65-37 with 12:12 to go.
“There’s little [three-point] and five-point swings at any point in time during the game, and [you] just gotta keep doing what you’re supposed to do,” Alexander said.
While both teams matched up more evenly with a 22-18 scoring slate in favor of Lipscomb the rest of the way, the Bisons ultimately held on without much of a struggle.
Lipscomb’s game is on the road MTSU on Saturday. Tipoff is scheduled for 5 p.m.
Photo by Russell Vannozzi