ALBION – A complete effort helped the Albion College men's basketball team get on the winning track, defeating Kalamazoo College, 96-60.
Cortez Garland exploded for 18 second half points in a 23-point effort to lead all scorers.
Lethal from beyond the arc,
Chanse Crittendon dropped a career-high 12 points, going 4 of 6 from three. With 11 points,
MJ Barnes was the only other Albion player in double figures. Four Brits scored eight points or better in the win.
Albion has now won 14 straight over the Hornets, dating back to 2015.
The first six minutes of the game were a back and forth battle before Albion used an 11-0 run to create distance from the Hornets. Buckets by
Devin Holmes,
Fred Garland and
Jonathan Armstead-Wilkerson were followed up by Crittendon's first triple of the night.
Ken Thomas capped off the run with a fast break basket, giving Albion a 21-10 lead.
32 seconds later, Armstead-Wilkerson found Crittendon who buried another three, pushing the momentum back in Albion's favor. That basket gave the Brits a double-digit lead – one they would hold for the rest of the night.
Albion closed out the first half on an 8-2 run, led in part by a pair of threes – one by Barnes and another by
Cortez Garland. The Brits held a commanding 44-23 edge at the half.
The second half proved nothing different, as the Brits remained dominant in the victory. An incredible second half by
Cortez Garland played a large role in Albion securing the conference win.
Turning defense into offense, Albion scored 30 points off turnovers. In the first half, Kalamazoo did not score off any Briton turnovers.
Backed by a solid night from the bench, the Brits got 42 points from their reserves. On the other end, the Hornets mustered just 19. Albion was also persistent on offense, scoring 19 second chance points.
Armstead-Wilkerson dished out five assists while
Justin McAbee contributed four. Thomas tallied three steals. Holmes led all players with eight rebounds.
Improving to 2-1 in the conference and 6-8 overall, the Brits will travel to Hope on Saturday in the second half of a doubleheader. Tip off against the Flying Dutch is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
