MBB Preview: Defiance seeks second straight win on Saturday
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DEFIANCE, Ohio – After snapping a seven-game losing streak on Thursday, Defiance College hits the court again on Saturday for a matinee against Hanover. Tipoff against the Panthers is scheduled for 2 p.m. at the Weaner Community Center.
In Thursday's 71-57 win over Mount St. Joseph, Defiance hit 58 percent of their shots on Thursday and committed just 10 turnovers, the lowest total since their last home win on December 14 vs. Olivet. The Yellow Jackets now stand 6-12 overall and 1-10 in the Heartland.
Hanover comes to Defiance standing 11-7 on the campaign and 7-4 in the HCAC, which is good for fourth place in the standings. The Panthers have won three games in a row with their most recent on Wednesday at Rose-Hulman by an 84-78 final. Senior Ty Houston surpassed 1,000 career points in the win as head coach Jon Miller notched his 250th win at Hanover. Houston currently ranks fourth among HCAC hoopers averaging 16.4 points per game. Teammate Jack Wininger is recording 8.2 rebounds per game, ranking second on the conference leaderboard.
Defiance senior Marell Jordan leads the scoring category in the Heartland by scoring 19.2 points per game. Jordan enters Saturday's action 43 points shy of 1,500 points in a Yellow Jacket uniform and 39 points from moving into the top 10 of DC's all-time scoring list. Jordan is also five steals from moving into second place in Defiance's history in that category as he leads the conference at 2.2 swipes per contest.
From a team perspective, Hanover scores 70.8 points per game compared to Defiance's 68.5 average. The Jackets were able to climb out of the conference's cellar in points allowed after holding MSJ to 57 points on Thursday night and are ranked eighth defensively with 77 points allowed per game. Hanover is the Heartland's No. 2-ranked defense at 64.1 points per game. Both squads are the top 3-point shooting teams in the conference with 151 makes apiece at a nearly 37 percent clip. Houston is Hanover's top hitter from outside with 27 made 3s while Jerome Johnson's 48 percent 3-point percentage is the best in the league.
The two squads last met at Hanover on December 10 and the Panthers cruised to a 73-46 victory. Jordan was DC's only player to hit more than one shot and scored a game-high 27 points. The Jackets were crippled by a 34 percent shooting afternoon and mustered just two free throw attempts at Collier Arena.
Saturday will be the 86th all-time meeting with Hanover leading the series, 50-35.
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