Decatur, IL--The Principia Panthers return to action after a short Christmas Break to play Millikin University in Decatur, IL. Millikin came into the game 7-4 overall and would prove to be a physical test for the Panthers. Principia came into the game a little banged up and only dressed 7 players. Despite being outnumbered the Panthers battled hard until the final buzzer, but Millikin University was able to come out with the 89-72 victory.
The game started out slow for the Panthers on both ends of the floor. Millikin was able to get off to a hot start and take an early 21-7 lead. It was at the 12 minute mark when a
Micah Paulson 3 pointer and a steal converted into an and one layup by
Parker Davidson sparked the Panthers. As the defense for Principia began to get stops their offense picked up in turn. Some timely shooting by
Brennan Paulson cut into the lead. By the 8 minute mark the lead had been cut to 1 point with a score of 25-26 in favor of Millikin.
Principia continued its good play as once again
Brennan Paulson hit a smooth 3 point jumper. On the following possession
Jeff Ross snatched a rebound and threw an outlet to
Micah Paulson who was able to make an and one layup and tie the game at 34 points.
Millikin was able to fire back and closed the half on a 12-2 run to take a 46-36 halftime lead.
In the second half the Panthers struggled to keep pace with the size and numbers of Millikin. Just three minutes into the second half some hot shooting and powerful rebounding put Millikin up by 16 points and they never looked back.
Principia continued their fight with limited numbers and three players in foul trouble. With 9 minutes left in the game a Principia 3 pointer cut a once 19 point lead back down to 10 and forced a timeout for the Big Blue of Millikin. Once again Millikin was able to answer back and stop Principia's last run. A tough game for the Panthers results in a 89-72 loss.
Notable Performance
Principia had extremely balanced scoring with 4 players in double figure scoring.
Micah Paulson led all with 19 points while
Parker Davidson and
TreVaughn Goodman were not far behind with 17 and 16.
Evan Eisenauer played a large role off the bench supplying energy and grit.
Up Next
Principia returns to Conference Play with a home game versus Blackburn College Tuesday night at 7 pm in Elsah, IL.
