Grantham, PA — If this is what's to be following a postponement due to inclement weather, Messiah head coach
Rick Van Pelt may be well served to hire a meteorologist as an assistant coach.
Messiah shot a season-best 60.5 percent from the field while holding Lycoming College to just a 34.5 percent clip, winning a crucial MAC Commonwealth Conference match-up Thursday night at Brubaker Auditorium. After a winter storm pushed the originally scheduled Wednesday game to Thursday night, it was the Falcons that hit on all cylinders, never trailing in the team's most lopsided win of the season to date.
The contest finalized the first round of conference play for all programs, helping to create an absolute mess within the league standings: Messiah (5-13, 3-3) now sits just a game out of first place, with Lycoming (9-8, 3-3) joining in the fight.
“I think the extra day of preparation helped us, especially defensively,” Van Pelt said of the rare Thursday-night affair. “I think our defense really set the tone. When our defensive effort is like that, we seem to value our offensive possessions more, since we worked so hard to get them.”
Van Pelt's squad certainly seemed to value efficiency on the offensive end, as Messiah connected on its first nine shots from the field, failing to miss until an errant floater from senior Jason Miller with just 6:21 to play in the first period. By that time, the Falcons had built a 25-15 lead, an advantage that would stretch to a 34-17 difference at the intermission.
When the dust settled, Messiah had connected on 12 of 19 first-half attempts from the floor (63.2 percent) while holding the Warriors to just a seven of 21 effort (33.3 percent).
“I thought our defense in the first half led to a lot of breaks for us offensively,” Van Pelt said. “Lyco came in here as the best defensive team in the league, so to be able to do what we did tonight has to make you feel good.”
Messiah effectively turned the tables on the Warriors — who entered the game leading the conference in overall defensive field goal percentage, points allowed and rebounding — continuing its torrid shooting in the second 20 minutes as well. Messiah hit on 11 of 19 shots from the floor (57.9 percent) while making 17 of 21 second-half free throws (81 percent), getting a host of those chances after Lyco attempted to extend the game late.
Such measures were needed from the Warriors, as Van Pelt's squad led by as many as 21 points before Lyco made its strongest rally attempt. A three pointer from Lycoming's Brandon Wilkinson made it a 43-27 game with 11:27 to play, but that shot was answered with a baseline trey from junior Jamie Yoder just 28 seconds later.
The Warriors responded with a quick, 5-0 run to cut the lead to just 14 points (46-32) with 9:48 to go, but a traditional three-point play on the Falcons' next possession put Brubaker into a fervor. Junior Andy Hawk missed a layup but got his own board at the 9:26 mark, hanging in the air to finish the putback — plus the contact. Hawk's made free throw made it a 49-32 difference, while steady free throw shooting kept the Warriors at least 16 points away down the stretch.
Freshman Danny Wrigley capped the evening with an exclamatory dunk with 40 seconds left, as Messiah had evened its conference record in the most dominating of fashions.
Yoder paced the Falcons' offense, scoring 15 points to go with four assists. Hawk tallied 13 points to go with five boards, while sophomore Josh Hartman added 11 points and Wrigley 10. Miller scored eight points, dishing out a game-high five assists.
It was just the fourth time that Messiah had posted at least four double-figure scorers on the season, while the team's defensive field goal percentage was also a team-best save for a 33.3 percent limitation against Lancaster Bible College back on Nov. 25. The team's 23 for 30 performance at the free throw line was also a season best in both makes and attempts.
“Our guys made plays,” Van Pelt said. “I thought Andy Hawk and Josh Hartman both had (good) games, and Danny Wrigley got a lot accomplished in a short amount of time. I think we're getting more comfortable together every time we play.”
Messiah begins the second leg of the conference schedule Saturday at Arcadia University, facing a Knights' team that shares the league “basement” — though that location is not far from the penthouse. Both Arcadia and Lebanon Valley College possess 2-4 conference marks, just two games out of first place.
“I think it's going to be more of the same,” Van Pelt said of the tight league race. “People are going to keep beating people, and there will be scores that seem surprising. I think everyone should feel like they have a shot to make the playoffs.”
Messiah will travel to Arcadia for a 3 p.m. tip off.
“Every game is big, and this one is no different,” Van Pelt said. “It seems like every time you get done with a game, the next one looks even bigger. If you want to get into the post-season, you've got to get some road wins, so this is a huge one for us. I told our guys that we have to approach every game as the underdog. We've got to fight and scratch and claw each night to get where we want to go.”
