EMORY, Va. – The Emory & Henry College Men's Basketball Team (1-7) earned its first win of the 2014-15 season with an 85-74 decision over Montreat College (4-7) Wednesday evening at Bob Johnson Court. The Wasps shot 45.2 percent (28-for-62) for the game and were 20-for-24 (83.3%) from the free throw line in the victory.
Sophomore guard Myles Turner (Richmond, Va.) led the way for E&H with a career-high 30 points on eight-for-16 shooting and a 13-for-15 performance at the charity stripe. It is the first time that an Emory & Henry player has reached the 30-point mark since Malcolm Green scored 31 points against Roanoke College on Feb. 8, 2012.
The two teams traded baskets early in the game with the Wasps holding a 15-12 advantage at the 11:16 mark after a layup by Turner. The Cavaliers scored the next 11 points of the game to take a 23-15 lead. Emory & Henry fought back, and after a 12-2 run led 35-32 with under a minute to go in the opening period. Montreat's Josh Foster hit a jumper with time winding down to make the halftime score 35-34 in favor of E&H.
Emory & Henry scored 10 of the first 12 points of the second half to go up by a 45-36 tally in the opening 3:28. The Cavaliers cut the deficit to three two minutes later but the Wasps bounced back to extend the margin to 60-47 with 11:58 on the clock, their largest lead of the game.
Montreat made another run at E&H, getting within three for a second time at the 5:13 mark, but four straight points by the Wasps ensured that there would be at least a five-point difference in the score for the rest of the way. Emory & Henry hit 13-of-14 (92.9%) of its free throws in the final two and a half minutes of the game to seal the win.
Turner added four rebounds and three steals to go along with his 30 points while freshman wing John Shelor (Giles, Va.) had career-highs with 22 points and eight rebounds as he connected on five three-pointers in the game. Sophomore guard Ryan Gravley (Austinville, Va.) chipped in 12 points, three rebounds, four assist and two steals while sophomore forward Brandon Self (Norfolk, Va.) had eight point, four rebounds, two blocks and two steals. As a team, the Wasps scored 34 points in the paint to go along with 24 points off of 21 forced turnovers.
The Cavaliers were paced by Foster's 20 points on just eight-for-20 shooting while Charles Smith-Perry added 12 points in the game. Cedric Cash notched 10 points and six rebounds while Myles Marshall had six points and a game-high 13 rebounds. Montreat shot 41.8 percent (28-for-67) from the field in the game but only made it to the free throw line 16 times, converting 11 attempts. The Cavs held a 46-33 rebounding advantage and a 41-34 lead on points in the paint, but turnovers played a large role in the outcome of the game.
Emory & Henry will have a week off for exams and will next take the court when it hosts NCAA Division II Lees-McRae College on Thursday, December 18 at the John Rutledge King Center. Tipoff between the Wasps and Bobcats is set for 7:00 p.m.
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-photo courtesy of Caleb Johnston, E&H '15