CLAREMONT, Calif. – The ninth-ranked Trinity men's basketball team fell to their first loss of the season at the hands of Claremont Mudd-Scripps.
Trinity (4-1) picked up a win and a loss on their west coast trip after a slim victory against Pomona-Pitzer (CA), while the Stags collected their 4th consecutive win. The Tigers will be hoping to get back to winning ways in their three remaining non-conference match-ups before SCAC play begins at the end of the month.
The Tigers shot just over 40% from the field and went 6-21 (28.6%) from three-point range, while Claremont had an impressive shooting performance, going 58.9% overall and hitting 45% of their shots from beyond the arc. CMS posted 25 assists to Trinity's 15, however the Tigers out-rebounded their opponents 36 to 28. Trinity converted just 11-of-19 (57.9%) shots at the foul line, but the Stags hit 12-of-15 (80%), adding 13 steals to go alongside their strong offensive showing.
Christian Green (San Antonio, Texas / Veterans Memorial) led Trinity with 24 points on 11-20 shooting while also posting a team high nine rebounds, five of which were offensive, and two steals.
Jacob Harvey (Huffman, Texas / Hargrave) added nine points with a trio of three point shots alongside 4 rebounds.
Zach Austin (Clarkston, Mich. / Clarkston) came off the bench to score a career-high six points, shooting a perfect 4-of-4 from the charity stripe.
The Rundown
Both teams came into this game off the back of important wins on Friday, each clearly eager to extend their winning form. Threes were exchanged in the opening minute before the Tigers got out to a quick lead, with Harvey and Green trading four consecutive Trinity buckets to put their team up by seven in the early stages. Harvey's third three inside the first ten minutes kept the Tigers lead alive but it was after this that the Stags started to turn up the heat. CMS prevented Trinity from scoring a field goal for over four minutes while scoring 11 points of their own, turning the game on its head at a score of 26-19 in favor of the hosts with seven minutes on the clock. With half-time looming, Claremont's momentum showed no signs of slowing down. Three steals and a couple of offensive rebounds drove their lead to double digits with under a minute to play, before a buzzer-beating jumper left the score at 41-29 at the half.
The Stags started the second half on the same foot, keen to walk away with their third win of the week. Sophomore guard Will Householter went 6-of-9 from beyond the arc in the second half, four of which came inside the first eight minutes, limiting the possibility of a Trinity comeback. Any chance that the Tigers had at overturning the deficit lay in the hands of Green who scored 18 second half points, including nine of his team's first ten.
A 17-5 stretch by Claremont extended their lead to 24 with eight minutes remaining, a mountain that was too difficult for the Tigers to climb. The teams went back and forth trading baskets in the closing period of the game, with the Stags offensive effectiveness preventing Trinity from putting any considerable run together. An impressive 60.7 FG% from CMS in the second half was their key to victory, consistently making important shots when they needed to to give them their sixth win of the season.
Up Next
Trinity will get back on the road with a trip to Abilene to face Hardin-Simmons on Tuesday, December 10th at 6:00pm. The Tigers will be back home with a pair of games against Illinois College and Wisconsin Lutheran on December 20th and 21st.
