Panthers Outlast Fontbonne University for an 83-78 Victory

Elsah, IL- Principia College Panthers played host to the Fontbonne University Griffins in their eighth conference game of the season. Fontbonne came into the game 1-6 in conference play while Principia sat at 4-3. The Griffins are a tough scrappy team that has lost several close games and always provide a challenge. Principia was able to battle and grind out an 83-78 victory over Fontbonne University.
 
The first few minutes of the game started off sloppy for the Panthers as they struggled to get into their offensive sets and missed shots early. Jeff Ross was able to give the team a spark with a steal and thunderous two hand dunk and the first bucket. The game continued in a slow grind out fashion but Fontbonne was able to jump out to a six point lead 7 minutes into the game. Principia locked in defensively and quickly took back the lead with a three pointer by freshman Payton Sellers. The game swung back and forth as each team took turns with a small 1-2 point lead. Just before halftime Micah Paulson answered a Griffin three pointer with a three of his own to give the Panthers a 31-28 lead going into halftime.
 
In the second half the Panthers made a point to come out with more energy and did so with some stout defense and much better offensive execution. At the 11 minute mark in the second half Micah Paulson got the crowd fired up with back to back three pointers to give Principia the largest lead of the night, 56-45. In the final 10 minutes of the game the scrappy Griffins battled to get back into the game after going down by 11 points. Each time Fontbonne would make a run Principia would dig a little deeper and push the lead back up to 10 points. Fontbonne was able to cut the lead down to 4 points with just 4 minutes left in the game but two layups and a timely three pointer by Payton Sellers stopped their run cold. In a grit and grind game Principia was able to stay the course and come out with the 83-78 victory over Fontbonne University.
 
Notable Performance:
Micah Paulson and TreVaughn Goodman led the way for Principia with 23 points apiece. Principia as a team continues their very efficient shooting as they shoot 55.6% from the field and 50% from three.
 
Up Next:
Principia will take a road trip to Louisville, KY to take on Spalding University at 7pm EST, on Tuesday January 16, 2018.