By: Lincoln Reed | Co-Sports Editor
The Taylor men's basketball team edged a 64-60 win over Spring Arbor during Tuesday night's conference matchup.
The Trojans gained an early lead when freshmen Jake Heggeland and Evan Crowe scored a combined seven points to give Taylor a 7-6 lead in the first four minutes of play.
Spring Arbor struggled to sink their shots early in the game. However, they managed to keep the score within reach until the end of the first half after Taylor recorded nine unanswered points within the final minutes of the first half to set the score at 27-20.The Trojans dominated the first five minutes of the second half when junior Lane Vander Hulst drained a three-pointer to set the score at 41-31. The Cougars, however, refused to quit and capitalized on Taylor errors and turnovers. Spring Arbor pecked away at the scoreboard with a string of three-point shots until they gained a 50-54 lead with 6:21 left in the second half.
"We had a stretch there in the second half where we were turning the ball over pretty errantly, unforced," said Taylor head coach Josh Andrews. "The majority of the game, they had a hard time making shots, and they got hot in that stretch, and we missed a couple of assignments."
Taylor rallied on a three-point shot from Vander Hulst to lower the deficit to 53-54 with 5:03 left to play. Spring Arbor increased their lead to 53-56 with a two-point shot.
Senior guard Shakir Dunning responded by sinking a two-point shot and forcing a turnover that allowed senior Kyle Stidom to give Taylor the lead at 57-56. Stidom and Crowe combined for six points to increase the Trojans' lead to 63-60 with 24 seconds left in the game.
A Spring Arbor personal foul on Taylor sophomore Vivian Aiken led to a free throw that sealed a 64-60 victory for the Trojans.
Stidom's performance earned him a team high of 25 points in Tuesday's game along with four assists.
"He is attacking the rim really well," said Andrews. "He had some nice passes last night (and) when we needed him down the stretch he came up big and finished well."
Taylor's defense held Spring Arbor to a 35.4 shooting percentage and forced 10 turnovers. Vander Hulst scored a total of 12 points and snatched seven rebounds. Heggeland racked up 10 points, including a dunk, while Crowe scored eight and Dunning recorded six. Aiken acquired seven rebounds and had a commanding dunk in Tuesday's performance.
Tuesday night's win moves Taylor's record to 11-14 overall and 5-8 in the Crossroads League. Moving forward, the Trojans look to strengthen their defense and improve their offensive play.
"We want to tighten up our defense (and) take away the opposing team's strengths," said Stidom. "That's a big thing-make them do things they aren't comfortable with. Offensively we want to make teams guard us, make them guard all our actions, respect every player on the floor."
Taylor takes the court again on Saturday when the Trojans travel to Ohio to face the Mount Vernon Nazarene Cougars. Mount Vernon stands at 3-9 in the Crossroads League behind Taylor. A win Saturday will prove crucial for the Trojans moving toward the conference tournament. Tip-off is at 3 p.m.
Photograph by Mindy Wildman
