Posted: Dec 07, 2013
Thomas College (2-4, 2-1 NAC) was able to overcome a 19 point halftime deficit to defeat Johnson State College (2-4, 0-3 NAC), 76-66 in a North Atlantic Conference (NAC) men's basketball contest on Saturday afternoon.
Johnson State came out firing early, taking an early 5-0 lead on a three pointer by Ron Adrian at 19:21, The Terriers lone lead of the opening period came at 15:04 on a layup by Levi Barnes. The Badgers held the hosts scoreless for the final 3:35 of the half, going on a 7-0 run to extend their lead to 19 points to go into halftime.
Barnes was the only Terrier with more than one basket entering halftime, having a game-leading 14 points, going 50% (5-10) from the field and 2-3 from downtown. Adrian had a team-high 11 points, while Bryan Hickey contributed with 10 points and nine rebounds for the away side in the opening stanza.
The second half saw the Terriers chip away at the Johnson lead, ultimately going on a monstrous 22-0 run which started at the 11:54 mark to take a ten point lead. Thomas led by as many as 15 points in the closing minutes, and were able to hold on for a 76-66 victory. The Terriers shot an astonishing 61.1% (22-36) from the floor, while holding their opponent to a mere 30% (6-20) in the closing half.
Barnes finished with a game-high 29 points, going 11-20 from the field and 5-7 from beyond the arc. Garen Manzo contributed with 16 points off the bench, shooting 8-12 from the floor.
Hickey led the Badgers with a double-double, having 20 points and 16 rebounds. Josh Reed chipped in with 12 points off the bench, shooting 4-10 from the floor.
Thomas will return to action after the holiday against Clark on December, 29 in the Woodcliff Hotel and Spa Tournament hosted by St. John Fisher in Pittsford, N.Y. The Badgers will travel to Colby-Sawyer on Thursday, December 12th for a 5:30p NAC contest.