Men’s basketball team lets halftime lead slip away in loss at Trine

ANGOLA, Ind. – The Olivet College men's basketball team built a double-digit lead in the first half but ended up losing to Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) foe Trine (Ind.) University, 62-57, tonight at the MTI Center. Trine entered the game ranked No. 20 in this week's D3hoops.com Top 25 poll.

• Final Score: Trine 62, Olivet 57
• Location: MTI Center; Angola, Indiana
• Records: Olivet 5-9 overall, 1-2 MIAA; Trine 13-1 overall, 3-0 MIAA

• After the Thunder scored the first five points, the Comets went on a 14-0 run. Trine cut its deficit to six points twice, 14-8 and 16-10. Olivet pushed its lead back to double digits, 27-16, after freshman Haidyn Garrison made a slam dunk. The Thunder closed the gap to seven points, 37-30, at halftime.
• Trine chipped away at its deficit and eventually took a 44-41 lead with 11:40 left in the game. The Thunder stretched their advantage to as many as eight points, 54-46, at the 3:52 mark. Olivet trimmed the margin down to a single point, 58-57, in the final minute of the game. Trine made all four of its free throws to seal the win.
• For the game, the Comets made one more basket than the Thunder. The difference in the game was Trine made 13-of-14 free throws compared to 6-of-9 for Olivet.

• Senior Tevin Ali posted a double-double, 14 points and 11 rebounds, to lead Olivet.
• Senior Ryan Robinette came off the bench to score 11 points.

• "We just weren't quite ready from a confidence standpoint to win that game," said Olivet head coach Sam Hargraves. "Our first half was wonderful. We knew Trine would step up its level of play in the second half, and we didn't match its intensity or toughness level. They are such a great defensive team, You have to pass the ball with purpose, and be incredibly aggressive to beat them. We just didn't do that the first 10-12 minutes of the second half. Down the stretch it seemed like they had more hustle than we did after some loose balls. Obviously that can't happen."

• Connor Jones led all players with 20 points.
• Brent Cox and Emmanuel Megnanglo each had 12 points.
• Aidan Smylie grabbed a team-best 11 rebounds.

• Olivet hosts Alma College Saturday at 3 p.m. The game is a part of a basketball doubleheader, as the Comet women also face Alma, starting at 1 p.m.