(CRESTVIEW HILLS, KY)-Thomas More University's men's basketball team defeated Hillsdale on Tuesday evening (March 5) in the Quarterfinals of the Great Midwest Athletic Conference, 72-71. This was the Saints first G-MAC tournament win. The Saints overall record improves to18-11 and 12-8 in conference.
- Graduate student Reid Jolly (Alexandria, Ky./Campbell County) made a jumper shot to kick things off to put the Saints up 2-0 with 19:43 on the clock.
- First year Nathan Dudukovich (West Chester, Ohio/Lakota West) drained a 3-point basket to give the Saints the go ahead lead with 14:00 left in the first half (10-7).
- Senior Eli Howard (Newport, Ky./Newport Central Catholic) drove to the rim for a layup with 10:21 left in the half to make it a 21-9 game.
- With 5:38 to play, Reid Jolly laid the ball in to put the Saints up 32-17.
- Junior Jacob Jones (Jeffersonville, Ind./Jeffersonville) made a layup for the Saints final basket of the half with 37 seconds left (40-21) and closed out the Saints 19-0 run over the Chargers.
- The Saints led 40-23 going into the locker room at the half.
- Reid Jolly led the team with 10 points and five rebounds in the first half.
- Jacob Jones also led with 10 points and two assists and had three rebounds.
- Sophomore transfer Mitchell Rylee (Ft. Mitchell, Ky./Covington Catholic) led with five rebounds and had six points.
- Nathan Dudukovich tallied two assist to lead the team and had five points and one rebound.
- The Saints were 58.1% (18-31) from the field, 27.3% (3-11) from the 3-point line, and50% (1-2) from the free throw line in the first half.
- Reid Jolly hit a jump shot to get things started in the second half for the Saints with 18:45 on the clock (42-25).
- With 15:54 to play, Jacob Jones drove to the basket for a layup to make it a 48-27 game.
- Nathan Dudukovich made a layup with 11:13 to play to extend the Saints lead to 57-37.
- Eli Howard banged in a 3-point shot to put the Saints up 69-56 with 2:51 to play.
- Mitchell Rylee knocked in a free throw with five seconds left to make it a 72-68 game.
- The Saints defeated the Chargers 72-71 to advance to the G-MAC tournament semifinals.
- Jacob Jones led the team in the second half with 12 points and had one assist.
- Nathan Dudukovich followed with 10 points,
- Mitchell Rylee led the Saints defensively with seven rebounds and had three points.
- The Saints were 45.5% (10-22) from the field, 37.5% (3-8) from the 3-point line, and 75% (9-12) from the free throw line.
- Jacob Jones led the team with 22 points and three assists and had three rebounds.
- Nathan Dudukovich followed with 15 points, two assists, and one rebound.
- Reid Jolly recorded 14 points, five rebounds, and one assist.
- Mitchell Rylee had a team high of 12 rebounds and had nine points and three assists.
- Eli Howard had 10 points, three rebounds, and one assist.
- The Saints were 52.8% (28-53) from the field, 31.6% (6-19) from the 3-point line, and 71.4% (10-14) from the free throw line.
The Saints return to action on Friday (March 8) against Tiffin in North Canton, Ohio at 7:00 pm ET in the Semifinals of the G-MAC Tournament.
