After falling to Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology (6-2) in an 87-72 decision on Thursday, the Anderson University men’s basketball team (5-3) rebounded with a 79-71 victory on Saturday in O.C. Lewis Gymnasium.

RECAP

• The Fightin’ Engineers pulled away early from the Ravens in the opening minutes.
• With 10 minutes and 50 seconds remaining on the clock in the first half, the Fightin’ Engineers led the Ravens 19-10.
• A 3-point jumper from Jordan Gadis signified the start of the comeback for the Ravens. At 6:18 remaining in the half, the Ravens trailed 24-18.
• Over the next four minutes, the Ravens slowly began to close down on the Fightin’ Engineers.
• Back-to-back free throws by Austin Lyons gave the Ravens the lead they had been searching for at 34-33 with 44 seconds remaining on the clock.
• Fred Shropshire drained a 3-pointer to send the Ravens into halftime with a 37-33 lead.
• For the remainder of the game, the Ravens held onto their lead.
• The Fightin’ Engineers would fight hard in the second half, but were unable to completely catch back up with the Ravens.
• The Ravens largest lead came at 7:52 remaining in the game after a Jordan Gadis 3-pointer to put the Ravens on top 63-51.
• Two free throws for Francis Uzorh secured the Ravens victory.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• The Ravens converted 26-for-48 (54.2%) from the field and 12-of-23 (52.2%) from the 3-point line.
• The Ravens defense held the Fightin’ Engineers to only 3-of-17 (17.6%) from the perimeter.
• Austin Lyons led the Ravens for the day with 20 points. He hit 4-of-5 (80%) from the 3-point range and went 4-for-4 in free throws.
• Ronny Williams came off the bench with 14 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 steals.
• Gavin Dowling recorded 14 points, 3 assists, 2 rebounds, 2 blocks, and 1 steal.

COACH OWEN HANDY’S COMMENTS

• We played with a lot of character [on Saturday] to come back on a short turnaround and execute as well as we did. We showed great patience on offense and consistently got quality shots. Austin Lyons adds another dimension for us at the offensive end with his ability to read screens and shoot off the move.
• We started slowly defensively today, without the intensity level or communication we needed to be good. We got beat on some easy weak-side backdoors down the stretch when we got caught ball watching. In between, we played as well defensively as we have all year.
• We got contributions from everyone [on Saturday]. Phil Bessick is a guy who could easily get frustrated or discouraged with his role right now. He shows up every day with a positive attitude, works hard, and is mentally prepared. He gave us four huge minutes defensively in the second half. Good teams must have great players, but good teams also have guys who are committed, selfless, and ready. We have had a lot of those guys over the years, and Phil is that guy for us right now.

UP NEXT

The Ravens welcome the Bluffton University Beavers (10-1) to the O.C. Lewis Gymnasium on Friday. Tip-off is at 6:15 p.m.

https://athletics.anderson.edu/sports/mbkb/2020-21/releases/20210206yocs3z