Second half rally pushes Judson past Trojans
Greg Gorham
Box Score Box Score | Season Stats
DEERFIELD, Ill. -- Three players finished in double figures, led by junior Justin Peeples' career-high 21 points, as the Trinity International Trojans fall to the Judson Eagles, 84-80, Saturday night inside the Meyer Sports Complex. While the Trojans shot a higher percentage from the field, and out-rebounded the Eagles 45-44, their opponents knocked down seven three-pointers in the second half to secure the win.
The Trojans (3-11, 1-4 CCAC) climbed out to an early lead on Thomas Amrine's three pointer at the 15:55 mark of the first half, giving TIU an early 10-4 edge. Judson (4-8, 1-2 CCAC) answered with a 10-2 run of their own, taking their first lead of the night on Alex Montsma's trey. After Ball tied the score on the next TIU possession, another Judson three-pointer made it a 17-14 JU advantage with 12:39 in the first half.
Judson would hold a slim lead throughout much of the first half; Peeples' layup at the 3:56 mark would tie the game at 30-30 while drawing a foul, and the following free throw would briefly put the Trojans in front. The Eagles scored six straight from that point, and would go into the halftime break holding a 42-38 lead.
Freshman Blake Mann would follow Peeples' lead and tie the game while drawing a foul coming out of the halftime break. Mann knocked down the free throw to put his team ahead 45-44 with 17:19 to play. Judson tied the game on the next possession, hitting one of two from the charity stripe, then held a narrow lead again for the next seven minutes. At that point, the Eagles got hot from long range and started to pull away; Judson knocked down four straight three-pointers on four consecutive possessions, taking a narrow three-point lead and turning it into a 68-57 advantage with 7:57 to play. Another layup would cap off the rally, putting JU ahead by 13.
Trinity International spent the remaining time climbing back into the game, outscoring Judson 23-14 over the final seven and a half minutes. Peeples' layup with 4:28 on the clock cut the Eagle advantage to single-digits, at 77-68. James Glass hit a layup with 3:10 to play to make it a five-point game. A trey from Peeples with 2:10 remaining made it a one-possession game, 80-77.
Down by three, 82-79, and with the final possession, the Trojans were intentionally fouled by the JU defense. Freshman Andy Stauffer hit one of two free throws to close the gap, but Judson knocked down their free throws down the stretch to close out the 84-80 victory.
Peeples scored 14 of his 21 points in the second half, and finished the night overall shooting 7-of-14 from the field. Ball collected his CCAC-leading ninth double-double of the season with 16 points and 14 rebounds. Stauffer also posted double-figures, with 14 points on 5-of-9 shooting.
The Trojans now enter Christmas break, and will prepare to travel to Daytona Beach, Fla. to start the New Year. TIU will take on the top-ranked team in the country to kick off 2014, when they face Embry-Riddle (Fla.). Tipoff is set for Friday, January 3, at 7:00 p.m.
