Slow Start Costs Cougars in 89-77 Loss at Bethel


	Cougar Basketball Game Recap Slow Start Costs Cougars in 89-77 Loss at Bethel written by Dave Parsons, Sports Information Director Game Boxscore MISHAWAKA, Ind. (1-3-2012) - The Mount Vernon Nazarene University men's basketball team dug itself an early hole and was never able to recover as the Cougars fell 89-77 at Bethel (Ind.) College in Mid-Central College Conference action in Wiekamp Arena on Tuesday night. The host Pilots (11-5, 2-2 MCC) jumped out to a quick 19-5 lead over the first eight minutes as MVNU (6-10, 0-4 MCC) went just 2-for-10 from the field, committed three turnovers, and even hit just one of two attempts from the free throw line. Bethel's lead grew to as much as 34-12 with 8:23 left before the break. Then, the Cougars began to chip away at the lead as MVNU used a 13-3 run to close the gap to 37-25 with 3:17 to play in the half. Unfortunately for the Cougars, the Pilots answered with seven straight points before settling for a 46-30 halftime lead. Sophomore wing Austin Semple led MVNU with nine first-half points, while junior guard Ben Severns added seven points. The Cougars shot 42.9 percent from the field (12-for-28), 28.6 percent from 3-point range (2-for-7), and 66.7 percent from the free throw line (4-for-6). Zach Miller drained 14 points with a trio of treys to pace Bethel in the first half, while Ryan Benner tossed in 12 points. The Pilots shot 47.1 percent from the field (16-for-34), 66.7 percent from 3-point range (8-for-12), and 75 percent from the free throw line (6-for-8). In the second half, Bethel's lead remained in double digits as the closest that MVNU could get was 67-57 with 7:56 remaining on a pair of free throws by senior guard Robbie Taylor. Trailing 82-67 with 1:40 to go, the Cougars made one last comeback bid as a 3-pointer each by Taylor and senior forward Danil Zakhlebnyy along with a jumper by sophomore wing Matt Anglea pulled MVNU within 82-75 with 46 seconds remaining. From that point on, Bethel connected on 5-of-6 free throws and added a jumper to post the 89-77 victory. Zakhlebnyy led all five starters in double figures for the Cougars as he finished with 19 points and nine rebounds. Semple added 14 points, sophomore post Caleb Williams contributed 13 points, and Taylor and Severns each tossed in 10 points apiece. Anglea was also a pleasant surprise off the bench as he totaled seven points and a game-high 10 rebounds. MVNU shot 41.5 percent from the field (27-for-65), 27.8 percent from beyond the 3-point arc (5-for-18), and 69.2 percent from the free throw line (18-for-26). Miller and Benner both finished with 19 points apiece for the Pilots as they combined to go 7-for-12 from 3-point range. Landon Booker and Michael Mislan also contributed 13 and 10 points respectively. Bethel shot 44.9 percent from the field (31-for-69), 60 percent from 3-point range (12-for-20), and 55.6 percent from the free throw line (15-for-27). "(Bethel) is a good team at home and did a good job of creating chaos at our end of the floor," said MVNU coach Matt Moore. "Matt (Anglea) did a great job for us off the bench, but we continue to fight an up-hill battle because of the number of turnovers that we have. Thursday is another opportunity." The Cougars will return to action on Thursday at home against Huntington (Ind.) University at 7 p.m.

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