FULTON, MO – The Principia Men's Basketball Team traveled to Fulton, Missouri to face the Westminster College Blue Jays in their second meeting of the season. In their first match up, Principia defeated Westminster 68-57 in Elsah. Principia's SLIAC record coming into the game was 6-2 – good for a tie for 2nd place in the conference standings – while Westminster was 1-7. Westminster jumped out to an early lead and was able to get going on the offensive end, while the Panthers struggled to find their rhythm. After a hook shot by
Clark Davidson tied the score at 16-16, the Panthers decided to take control of the game. A 10-0 run by the Panthers pushed their lead out to 15, as Principia went into the half up 49-34. The second half consisted of both teams trading baskets, but Westminster could not mount a charge to get themselves back in the game. The Panthers would come away with the 89-75 win.
The Panthers came out flat at the beginning of the game, allowing the Blue Jays to take an early. five point lead. It was not until a massive two-handed dunk by
Payton Sellers with 14:16 remaining in the half that the Panthers found their energy and were able to begin to take control. Nine quick points by
Marco Powells off the bench got the Panthers humming on the offensive end, with a Powells floater giving the Panthers a 35-29 lead. Back-to-back threes by
Payton Sellers pushed the lead to 47-32 with 1:32 left in the half. Principia would head into the break with the lead at 49-34.
The second half for the Panthers started with back-to-back 3-pointers by
Payton Sellers and
Clark Davidson to stretch the lead to 18. From here, the lead would bounce from 22 to 14 for the rest of the game. Westminster could never cut the Panthers lead below the 14 point barrier, as Principia secured the decisive road victory, 89-75.
Good to Know: The Panthers were led by
Clark Davidson who had 22 points, 5 rebounds, 2 blocks, and 1 steal.
Jaquan Adams had 18 points off the bench on 7/7 shooting from the field, while also chipping in a team-leading 6 rebounds.
Payton Sellers and
Marco Powells both finished with 11 points, helping Principia have four players in double figures. Principia moves to 7-2 in the SLIAC and takes over sole possession of 2nd place. The Panthers are now at 15 wins on the year, which puts them just two wins away from breaking the program record of wins in a season (1971-72).
Up Next: Principia heads back home for a three-game home stand beginning on Saturday, February 4th at 3:00 pm against Greenville University. The Panthers narrowly defeated Greenville 94-91 in their first match up and will be looking for the season sweep. Come out and pack the gym to cheer on your Panthers as they look to continue to march towards a postseason berth!
