November 9, 2018 / Trailblazers cruise to another win
VINCENNES, Ind. -- The Vincennes University Men’s Basketball team made quick work of Lincoln Land in the nightcap of the Sodexo Classic inside the PE Complex Friday night.
The No. 6 Trailblazers raced out to early 11-0 lead before going on an impressive 28-0 run to bury the Loggers by the halfway mark of the first half.
VU went on to a 73-14 advantage at halftime en route to a 123-30 rout.
With the win, the Trailblazers improve to 4-0 on the season.
“I thought we came out and played well,” VU coach Todd Franklin said. “Yeah maybe the opposition did not play as well as they would have liked, but I thought our guys played well. They shot the ball well, they finished and they defended.”
According to Trailblazer historian and current Trailblazer broadcaster, David Hunter, the 93-point margin of victory is the third largest in program history.
Kevin Kone, Kevin Osawe and Michael Rogers came off the bench to led the Trailblazers in scoring with 14 points apiece.
A total of seven different VU players reached double digits in the scoring column as Keith Clemons (13), Lony Francis, Jr. (12), Jordan Lyons (11) and Cardell McGee (10) all reached the plateau.
All 13 Trailblazers scored at least three points in the romp.
“We don’t like playing in (lopsided) games like these, but on the positive side it gives a lot of guys an opportunity to see the floor,” Franklin said. “I thought the guys handled this game as well as they could.”
None of the starters played more than 20 minutes in the game.
Perhaps the most impressive stat line came from back-up point guard, Chuka Mekkam. The freshman added eight points and eight assists in just over 16 minutes of action on the floor.
“Chuka did a lot of good things tonight,” the Trailblazers coach said. “He missed two weeks of practice and the first two games, so he looked a little rusty on Tuesday. But tonight, I thought he looked quicker to the basket and was more decisive with the ball.”
For the game, VU shot 61 percent (50 of 81), while holding the Loggers to just 11-for-62 (18 percent) shooting from the field.
The Trailblazers also dominated the glass with a 59-18 advantage in rebounds.
Chinedu Okanu pulled down a game-high 10 boards off the bench for VU.
The Trailblazers return to the court Saturday night against East Mississippi. It is homecoming for the Trailblazers with tipoff scheduled for 7 p.m.
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