NEW CONCORD, Ohio – The Muskingum University men's basketball team jumped out to an early 25-11 lead Wednesday and never looked back during an 86-60 non-conference victory over the visiting Kenyon College Lords.
The host Fighting Muskies made eight of their first ten shots, including a pair of three-pointers from Mitch Clark and one more from Jalen Paige. During their game-opening blitz, the Fighting Muskies went on an 11-0 run that extended a 14-11 lead to a 25-11 lead with 11:06 remaining in the half. The run included five consecutive points from Marcus Dempsey, followed by four points from Carson Carter and two more from Devon Peart.
Kenyon never fully recovered from Muskingum's fast start. After falling behind by 14 points, the Lords never pulled closer than 12 and trailed by 22 at halftime. Muskingum shot 52.9 percent (18-of-34) in the half, compared to 37.0 percent (10-of-27) for Kenyon.
In the second half, Muskingum moved ahead by as many as 35 points before settling on the final margin of 26. The Fighting Muskies had four players total double-digit scoring marks and had 14 players each record two points or more. Dempsey finished with a game-high 15 points, Clark and Paige both tossed in 12 points, and Carter finished with 11.
Kenyon's
Alex Cate scored 10 points and grabbed nine rebounds.
Elijah Davis also scored ten points and added three assists.
Ryan O'Neil and
Matt Shifrin each scored nine.
The Lords, now 0-10, have one more game to play before the end of the calendar year. That game will be a conference contest Saturday at home against No. 12-ranked Wittenberg University.
On the other side of the court, the win improved Muskingum's overall record to 3-4.
