Saturday, December 13, 2003

BLUE HOSE POWER PAST BEARCATS 72-54
 IN MEN’S BASKETBALL ACTION

CLINTON, S.C. — Presbyterian College redshirt junior forward Rich Adams (Columbia, S.C.) came off the bench to tally a career-high 14 points and lead three Blue Hose in double figures en route to a 72-54 win over Lander University Saturday night in men’s basketball action at the Ross E. Templeton Center.

Adams hit five-of-eight field goals on the night and added four rebounds for his career-best performance. PC’s sophomore forward Tray Ballenger (Wellford, S.C.) added a season-best 15 points as the Blue Hose improve to 7-3 on the season. Lander University was led by junior guard Richard Gilliam (Fort Worth, Tex.) who tallied a season-high 26 points  on eight-of-eight shooting at the free throw line as the Bearcats fall to 3-6 on the season.

PC opened the game on a 10-3 run highlighted by three -pointers from Ballenger and senior guard Andrew Dellinger (Mauertown, Va.). The Bearcats chipped away at the lead over the next few minutes until junior guard Bryson Chattam (Woonsocket, RI) cut the lead to 19-18 with 7:31 remaining before intermission. The Blue Hose responded with a 18-3 run to finish the half and led 37-21 at the half.

In the second half, PC opened with a 11-1 run over the first seven minutes to go ahead 48-28 at the 13:15 mark on a three-pointer by Adams. Lander’s short bench couldn’t match PC’s lineup down the stretch as the Blue Hose extended their lead to as many as 26 points (66-40) with 3:47 left in the game. PC went on to win the game by a score of 72-54.

Dellinger finished the game for PC with 12 points on four-of-eight shooting from beyond the arc to go along with a team-high six assists.

Freshman center Emmanuel Hodrea (Norcross, Ga.) added nine points and nine rebounds for the Bearcats.

PC will take time off for next week’s exams and will return to action on Tuesday, December 30th when they host nationally ranked Queens University of Charlotte at 7:00 pm. The Bearcats return to action on January 3rd when they travel to Greeneville, Tenn. to face Tusculum College at 4:00 pm.