DC Ends Winless Streak With Victory Against Earlham

RICHMOND, IND.  --  The Defiance College men's basketball team snapped a three-game winless streak with a solid shooting performance against Earlham (Ind.) College and defeated the Quakers, 78-64, in a Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference game in Richmond, Ind.

The Yellow Jackets shot 56.8 percent (25-of-44) as a team, including 45.5 percent (10-of-22) from three-point range and an impressive 90.0 percent (18-of-20) at the free-throw line.

Individually, DC was paced by the duo of senior Devin Mangas (Leipsic) and junior Jonathan Ragland (Wilmette, Ill./Loyola Academy) with 14 points each.  Mangas shot four-of-six (66.7 percent) from the floor, while Ragland shot five-of-eight (62.5 percent) overall and four-of-six (66.7 percent) from long range.

Joining Mangas and Ragland in double figures were senior Chris Holmes (Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence North) and sophomore Randall Aikins, Jr. (Detroit, Mich./Plymouth) with 11 points apiece.  Aikins also tallied a game-high five assists.

Holmes and freshman Payton Ross (Indianapolis, Ind./Arlington) both led the team, and all players, with a game-high six rebounds each.

Defiance (4-10, 3-4 HCAC) took an eary 8-3 lead, but Earlham (5-9, 1-6 HCAC) answered with an ensuing 16-4 scoring run to go up by seven points, 19-12, at the 11:35 mark.  The Jackets then rattled off five straight points as part of a greater 20-2 run of their own that ended in a three-pointer by Ragland and gave DC an 11-point advantage, 32-21, nearing the end of the half.

Following a pair of free-throws by the Quakers, Holmes connected on a triple on DC's next possession to give the Yellow Jackets their largest lead of the half of 12 points, 35-23, with 1:31 to play in the period.  Earlham recorded the final points, all at the free-throw line, but still trailed by nine points at the break with a halftime score of 35-26.

Coming out of the locker rooms, Earlham chipped away at the Defiance lead and outscored the Jackets, 17-8, to even the score at 43-43 with just over 13 minutes remaining.

Senior Keandre Gilmer (Toledo/Rogers) gave the lead back to DC with an ensuing jumper, but a three-point play by Earlham put the Quakers ahead by a point, 46-45, with 11:14 to go.  That would be the last lead Earlham had in the game as DC went on a 10-2 run to take over the lead again and went up by seven points, 55-48, at the 6:05 mark.

Earlham pulled to within four points following the run with a triple, but another run by DC, this time a 7-0 run, increase the Jacket lead to a more comfortable 11 points, 62-51, and maintained a sizeable lead the rest of the way.

Defiance went on to record its larget lead of the game of 14 points on two occasions in the final minute, including the final score of 78-64 after a pair of free-throws by Mangas to end the scoring.

The Yellow Jackets will travel to Terre Haute, Ind. for a HCAC game against Rose-Hulman (Ind.) Institute of Technology on Saturday, Jan. 14.  The game will be part of a basketball doubleheader with the DC women's team.  The women will face the Fightin' Engineers at 1 p.m., followed by the men at 3 p.m.