Yellow Jackets earn narrow road win over Mount Saint Vincent, 75-72

The Defiance College men's basketball team traveled to New York to play the Mount Saint Vincent Dolphins Monday afternoon. The Yellow Jackets escaped with a 75-72 win as the Dolphins had two looks from deep but missed both as time expired. It was a wire-to-wire win as the game featured 14 ties and 30 lead changes.

The Basics:

• Records: Defiance (4-5) Mount Saint Vincent (3-7)

• Location: Peter Jay Sharp Center - The Bronx, NY

• Attendance: 44

Inside The Numbers:

• Kiewaun Graham recorded a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. 

• Easton Lewis, Te Jones, and Jerome Johnson were huge off the bench for Defiance.

• Lewis and Jones each finished with 12 points and Johnson scored 15, giving the Yellow Jackets four double-digit scorers.

• Defiance drained 11 three-pointers and had a +18 advantage from beyond the arc.

• Defiance 46 points from their bench compared to only 18 for the Dolphins.

• Joshua Cabezudo finished with 25 points and 11 rebounds to lead Mount Saint Vincent.

The Breakdown:

• The first few minutes were a back and forth affair as both teams traded small leads.

• Defiance went on an 8-0 run to take a 16-9 lead with 10:53 remaining in the half but the Dolphins answered right back with a 7-0 run to tie the game at 16 with 8:55 remaining. 

• After holding a 19-16 lead, the Yellow Jackets would trail for the final eight minutes of the half and the Dolphins took a 32-28 lead into halftime.

• Seven of Defiance's nine field goals were from long range in the first half that allowed them to hang around as the Dolphins scored half of their points from inside the paint.

• The Yellow Jackets shot 27 percent from the field in the first half and the Dolphins shot 35 percent. 

• Defiance took their first lead of the second half when Easton Lewis converted a three-point play to give the Jackets a 52-50 lead with 10:20 remaining. 

• The Dolphins immediately responded by taking advantage of Defiance turnovers to regain a 57-55 lead with 8:42 remaining. 

• The two teams traded buckets on ensuing possessions.

• Kiewaun Graham hit two free throws to give Defiance a 66-65 lead with 3:16 left in the game.

• Defiance did not surrender the lead the rest of the way as Te Jones and Jerome Johnson made their free throws down the stretch.

Up Next:

• The men's basketball team travels to Pennsylvania Wednesday, December 11 for their final non-conference game of the season against Immaculata University. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.