Story by Mitch Blankespoor
KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Kalamazoo College men's basketball team dropped its Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) opener Thursday, Jan. 9 with a 87-81 loss to the Albion College Britons.
Albion, which game into the game with a 6-5 record, used a couple of timely steals to earn an early lead. In fact, the Britons led by as many as seven points in the first half when Eric Evans nailed a three pointer to but the visitors up 20-13. Kalamazoo responded closing out the first half on an extended 29-20 run and took a 42-40 lead into halftime.
"We missed some shots early and they got a little lead," Kalamazoo Head Coach Eric Dougal said in a post-game interview. "We came roaring back in the later part of the first half."
The game remained right through the early stages of the second half. With Kalamazoo leading 65-64, Albion went on an 8-0 run in just under three minutes to give the Britons a 72-65 lead that the Hornets could not overcome.
"Ultimately, they [Albion] played harder than we did," Dougal said. "Albion really hit the offensive glass tonight."
Rebound the basketball is exactly what Albion did. The Britons outrebounded Kalamazoo 42-33 in the contest and grabbed 17 offensive boards.
"It's difficult to win basketball games when you are giving the opponent 17 second chances," Dougal said.
Junior forward Adam Peters led everyone in scoring with 21 points while senior guard Mark Ghafari chipped in 17. Freshman guard Adam Dykema added 15 points, 10 of which game in the second half. Freshman forward Chase Baysdell added seven points and nine rebounds.
Albion used a balanced scoring attack headed up by Jordan Herron who earned the games only double-double with 12 points and 10 boards. Six other Britons scored at least eight points.
Kalamazoo falls to 5-7 on the season and 0-1 in the MIAA. The Hornets have a quick turnaround as K travels to Olivet Saturday, Jan. 11 for a 5:00 p.m. game with the Olivet Comets.