Men's Basketball Stands Tall in Home Win Against Knights

By Mike DeVader, Reinhardt Director of Athletic Communications & Media

WALESKA, Ga. – Reinhardt men's basketball came back to the Brown Athletic Center on Saturday evening and got back in the winner's column after overcoming a 10-point deficit midway through the second half to take down Kentucky Christian, 71-67.

The Eagles (6-15, 5-11 Appalachian Athletic Conference) were guided by a consistent flow on offense and suffocating defense – particularly in the final period – where the Knights were held to 29.2 percent from the floor.

"I'm very proud of the guys, as they talked about an attitude of belief to win the game and came through with that," head coach Justin Newton said. "Our guys really cranked up defensively in the second half and really guarded together. Our bench and our crowd gave us a lot of energy to finish strong."

The hometown team was able to elevate its game in the second half after falling behind, 39-32, heading into the locker room. Josh Daniels netted a squad-best 18 points and six rebounds, while right behind him was Marcus Kirkland with 17 tallies and six boards as well.

Reinhardt was able to keep Kentucky Christian from lighting up the scoreboard as it slowly-but-surely started to close the deficit between the two schools. The Knights started missing shots and the Eagles forced them into foul trouble by being more aggressive. Daniels would give his team a 60-58 lead with a 3-pointer with 3:32 remaining on the clock.

From there, free throws would become a deciding factor in the outcome after Reinhardt hit 18-of-24 from the line – 17-of-20 in the final 20 minutes of play.

Chris Rogers was also in double figures with 10 points and three rebounds in the win. Jordan Wright and Jervon Walker played crucial minutes off the bench and combined for 12 points and a half-dozen boards.

Overall, the Eagles connected on 23-for-51 from the floor, including seven treys and 10 assists.

Nineteenth-ranked Union (Ky.) is next up on the schedule on Tuesday night at 7:30 p.m. at home.

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For more information on Reinhardt Men's Basketball, please click here.