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Grantham, PA - Messiah College rebounded from a frustrating Commonwealth loss this past weekend by defeating Widener University on Wednesday, as Brad Bolen hit six of ten three-pointers to score a game-high 29 points. Bolen's impressive shooting from deep included a five for seven showing in the first-half.
“Brad really shot well tonight, which was important for us,” head coach Rick Van Pelt said. “He really led the way early, and he stayed aggressive the whole night. His play did a lot for our team.”
Bolen and his teammates started out quickly, as Messiah went up 8-0 after less than two minutes from tip-off. His second three-pointer of the night put the Falcons up 11-4 a few minutes later, with a third bucket from downtown giving the Falcons a 14-9 lead with 13:18 left in the first-half.
Executing against Widener's match-up, 2-3 zone for most of the night, Messiah stayed in front of the Pride the entire night. Nevertheless, Widener stayed close behind the strong play of guard Dillon Fields. He scored the last four points for Widener in the first-half, bringing the visitors to within 34-29 at the half.
Bolen led all scorers at the half with 17 points, as he hit five of seven attempts from three-point range. His play at both the post and perimeter spaces for the Falcons proved effective for Messiah.
“We knew that Widener is a talented team, and we expected Fields to be a big player for them,” Van Pelt said. “I think our guys worked hard to keep the lead in the first-half, and I was pleased with our execution against their zone defense.”
Messiah added to their lead at the beginning of the second-half, with two free-throws from Zac Hoy putting Messiah ahead by ten points (46-36) with 15:47 remaining. Widener continued to play mostly zone defense against the Falcons, though the Falcons' aggressive attack continued to create high-percentage shots.
Bolen's sixth and final three-pointer gave Messiah a 51-38 lead with 12:47 left in the game, with a three-point-play by Hoy giving Messiah their largest lead of the night at 55-39 with just under nine minutes remaining.
Widener responded with a 10-0 run to draw to within 55-49, but the momentum never fully left the hands of the Falcons. Bolen and Hoy each scored on driving layups in the half-court on Messiah's next two possessions, as Messiah held a double-digit lead the rest of the way.
Though Fields scored 21 points for Widener, David Nicholson (11 points) was the only other Pride player to crack double-figures. No other player for Widener (4-12, 3-6) scored more than six points.
“Our defensive field goal percentage has not been where we want it to be,” Van Pelt said, commenting on Messiah's 43.9% field goal defense- a figure ranking seventh in the Commonwealth. “We know that we need to be better, and although they still shot better than we'd like, we made it tough on them in big stretches.”
"I thought Christyan (DeVan) competed really hard tonight," Van Pelt said of his junior guard, who only played 21 minutes after recovering from a cold. "Defensively, he plays with such determination and we need that."
Hoy scored 19 points to back up Bolen, hitting eleven of thirteen free-throws while grabbing six rebounds. Taylor Groff scored ten points for the Falcons, as he and Hoy each grabbed three steals.
Bolen's 29 points is a career-high, one better than his 28 points scored against Lebanon Valley earlier this season. His six made three-point field goals are the most by a Falcon since teammate Derek Mosley hit seven three's in a 65-52 win against Arcadia on Feb. 12, 2011.
The win moves Messiah to 9-6 overall, with their Commonwealth record improving to 5-4. They move into a tie with Arcadia for fourth place in the conference after Arcadia lost to Alvernia on Wednesday night.
The Falcons will look to build a win streak in the conference when they host Hood College on Saturday at 7:00 p.m. Earlier this season, Messiah defeated the Blazers on the road by the score of 63-53. Hood will enter the game at 4-4 in the conference, good for fifth place.
“Hood is a really good team, they're a bear,” Van Pelt said, thinking of Saturday's game. “Our conference is wide open, with a bunch of teams fighting for playoff positioning. We'll need to keep improving to separate ourselves from the pack.”
Check out a few photos from tonight's contest (These photos are NOW available for purchase!)
