Jack Kahoun shooting
Berith Han
83
Trinity Int'l TIU 0
92
Winner Asbury ASBURY 0
Trinity Int'l TIU
0
83
Final
92
Asbury ASBURY
0
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Trinity Int'l TIU 31 52 83
Asbury ASBURY 40 52 92

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | Ethan Oskroba

Trojans bested in high-octane thriller at nationals

WINONA LAKE, IN— Though their dreams of a national title slipped away on Wednesday, that didn't stop Trinity from posting a riveting effort on Thursday afternoon. Their battle against the Eagles of Asbury University had an Ali-Frazier flavor to it, with the rivals racing down the court and scoring with relentlessness and ease. When the dust settled, it was the Eagles who earned the victorious decision, outlasting the Trojans by a 92-83 margin.

The Trojans got going early, with their notorious microwave scorer Diamond Presniakovas surging out to a sizzling start, scoring eight of the Trojans first 11 points. The Eagle offense was also clicking, however, and the rival squads went back and forth, with neither team holding a two-possession lead for nearly the first 10 minutes of the contest. Fittingly, it was Presniakovas who brought an end to the tight-knit sequence, pouring in another pair of successive layups to give the Trojans a 22-17 edge. The Trojan advantage reached a high watermark of eight after a triple from standout rookie Stratton Lovvorn, but it was the Eagles who landed a metaphorical knockdown before the bell, rapidly erasing the Trinity lead and opening up a 40-31 edge at the break.

The Eagles continued to wear down their foe, opening up a 22-point lead by midway through the second half. Sensing the urgency, the Trojans hit the accelerator, waylaying their opponent to the tune of a 22-4 run that shrank the formerly cavernous deficit to just four. A long-range barrage fueled the Trojan comeback, with Trinity canning four threes, including two by Monte Lambert, who supercharged the attack, being responsible for 10 points during the sequence. Despite flipping the momentum, the Eagles managed to tread water and hang onto the lead, surviving one last Trojan run—and another Lambert three to bring him to a nigh-unfathomable 50 percent from deep this season—to see the contest through, winning 92-83.

While the Trojans failed to pry a win from one of the NCCAA's top teams for the second straight day, they again represented themselves with pride and enjoyed a series of impressive individual efforts. Trinity's Swiss army knife star Xavier Cooper quietly marked up the stat sheet in terrific fashion, flirting with a triple-double before finishing with 16 points, 11 rebounds, and six assists while making three of his seven attempts from downtown. Presniakovas' monster first half supported double-double metrics (14 points, 11 rebounds), while Lambert starred in the second half, compiling all of his 15 points and perfect three-for-three from long range in that frame. Asher Blum and Jack Kahoun (11 points each) were also among the five scorers in double figures for the Trojans, who rained down 11 threes in the contest.

The Trojans (16-15) will take the court for the final time in the program's history on Friday, March 17, in the 7th place game against Ecclesia College.
 
 

TIU Trojans

 

 

TIU Men's Basketball

 

 

 

 

Trinity International University is a comprehensive, national university affiliated with the Evangelical Free Church of America and located in Bannockburn, Illinois, 25 miles north of Chicago. TIU educates men and women to engage in God's redemptive work in the world by cultivating academic excellence, Christian faithfulness, and lifelong learning.
 
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