Cougars Suffer First Loss of the Season at No. 21 Indiana East


	Cougar Basketball Game Recap Cougars Suffer First Loss of the Season at No. 21 Indiana East written by Dave Parsons, Sports Information Director Game Boxscore RICHMOND, Ind. (11-8-2011) - After getting off to a 3-0 start to the 2011-2012 season, the Mount Vernon Nazarene University men's basketball team ran into a speed bump on Tuesday night in the form of NAIA Division II No. 21 Indiana University East as the Cougars fell 97-73 in a non-conference game at the Tiernan Center. MVNU got off to a great start in the game as the Cougars nailed seven of their first 11 3-point attempts to jump out to an early 21-11 lead. However, over the next 17 minutes to end the first half and start the second half, the host Red Wolves (3-1) used a 64-19 run to build a commanding 75-40 lead and never looked back. MVNU was led by senior guard Robbie Taylor *(left)*, who finished with a game-high 21 points. He nailed his fifth and final 3-pointer of the game with 40 seconds remaining to become the 33rd player in school history to reach the 1,000-point mark. Ironically, he accomplished the feat on his 21st birthday. Junior guards Ben Severns and Bryce Barnes also finished with 20 points apiece with Severns nailing five treys and Barnes adding three of his own. Severns also tied for game-high honors by grabbing six rebounds. The Cougars shot 42.1 percent from the field (24-for-57), 46.7 percent from 3-point range (14-for-30), and 61.1 percent from the free throw line (11-for-18). MVNU was out-rebounded 46-29 and committed 19 turnovers that led to a 28-8 advantage for Indiana East in points off turnovers. Marcus Isaac led the Red Wolves with 20 points as he set an Indiana East school record by going 8-of-8 from the field, 3-for-3 from 3-point range, and 1-for-1 at the free throw line. Cody Banet, Bakari Smith, and Tyler Fangman each added 10 points apiece. The Red Wolves shot 50.7 percent from the field for the game (37-for-73), 44.4 percent from 3-point range (8-for-18), and 71.4 percent from the free throw line (15-for-21). "We got into a really nice rhythm offensively early on," said MVNU coach Matt Moore. "Then, fatigue began to settle in and our shots stopped falling. Danil (Zakhlebnyy) also got into foul trouble, which hurt us. They forced us farther out and we were settling for jump shots instead of attacking the basket. Their transition also really hurt us." "We'll get back to work in practice to get ready for Saturday's Homecoming game," Moore added. "We've played really well at home and we'll look to continue that this weekend." The Cougars will return to action on Saturday at 3 p.m. when they will host the University of Michigan-Dearborn in the second half of the annual Homecoming doubleheader. The MVNU women's basketball team will square off with Wilberforce University in the first game at 1 p.m.

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