By: Provided by Elmira Athletics
SPRINGFIELD, OH -- The Elmira College men's basketball team overcame deficits in the first and second halves en route to its first win of the season, 60-55, over Spalding University in the second round of Wittenberg University's 2019 Kiwanis Holiday Classic on Monday afternoon.
For the second time in as many days, the Soaring Eagle defense set a new season-best, limiting the Spalding Golden Eagles (1-8) to a mere 34.7 field-goal percentage (17-of-49), while forcing its opponent to commit 16 turnovers, a season-high. Meanwhile, the Elmira (1-8) offense coughed up the ball just nine times and outscored the Golden Eagles 33-18 in the second half.
EC trailed by as many as 10 points in the first half and eight points in the second, but on both occasions, senior guard Jeremy Every '20 capped off runs by the Soaring Eagles to pull ahead. With 5:40 left in the opening half, the Sacramento, California, native scored the go-ahead points that turned a 14-4 deficit into a 21-20 advantage. However, Spalding ended the half on a 7-0 run that helped the Golden Eagles regain the lead at halftime, 37-27.
The Soaring Eagles trailed for the first 13-and-a-half minutes of the second half, too. Utilizing a 1-2-2 zone press to slow down the Spalding offense, Elmira kept the deficit at single digits and slowly began to chip away. EC then came all the way back to even the score at 45-all on an Every fade-away from the foul line.
Every briefly gave Elmira the lead, 47-45, on the team's next possession, before the two feathered foes traded blows. Down 52-49, Shawn Backus '21 brought EC within one point, and with just under three minutes left in regulation, Kyle Kokoskie '22 splashed a 3-pointer to give Elmira the lead for good at 54-52. Mason Weir '21 provided the knockout punch with 1:25 remaining, as the junior guard added a trey of his own to conclude an eight-point run.
Four Soaring Eagles reached double figures, led by Backus with a season-high-tying 15 points on 7-of-12 shooting. Every, Kokoskie, and first-year guard David Kruis '23 each netted single-game season-bests with 13-, 11- and 10-point performances, respectively.
In Their Own Words...
Head Coach
Randie Torgalski on the Soaring Eagles returning from Ohio with their first win...
"It obviously feel good. The boys have had a very challenging and trying non-conference schedule. We've played one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the country. We had to overcome some self-inflicted adversity on this trip, but we stuck together and battled for 40 minutes today. Very proud of the response we received from the challenge we gave the boys."
News and Notes
- Elmira earned its first win of the 2019-20 campaign on Monday afternoon against the Spalding Golden Eagles, members of the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC).
- The EC defense allowed season-lows in field goals (17) and field-goal percentage (34.7), while the Golden Eagles committed 16 turnovers, the most by an opposing offense this season.
- 55 points are the fewest allowed by the Soaring Eagles in a game this season as well.
- Backus tied a season-high with 15 points, as the junior forward reached double-digits for the sixth time this year.
- Every's 13 points mark the first double-digit game of his senior season.
- Kokoskie (11) and Kruis (10) each recorded a career-high point total against the Golden Eagles.
Up Next
Following the New Year's holiday, the Elmira men will open Empire 8 Conference play on Saturday, January 4, when the Soaring Eagles host Hartwick College at 2:00 p.m. inside Speidel Gymnasium.