Hot start propels Pioneers past Defiance

DEFIANCE, Ohio – An early 18-0 hole was too deep for the Defiance Yellow Jackets to overcome in an 84-51 defeat to the Transylvania Pioneers at the Weaner Center on Saturday. 

Saturday's contest was the second consecutive game in which DC was facing a team tied for first place in the HCAC. The Pioneers improved to 13-4 and 8-2 in the conference while the Jackets suffered their 14th loss in a row to remain winless in league play.

TURNING POINT

The Pioneers took command from the opening tap. They started 6-for-6 from the floor, forced two turnovers, and grabbed rebounds on three Defiance misses to build a 13-0 lead over the first 3:34 of the game.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Pioneers built up an 18-0 lead before Jeffrey Smith hit a 3-pointer from the point of the arc to get DC on the board. The Yellow Jackets committed nine turnovers over the first eight minutes of the game and were held to just five shots from the floor while Transylvania dominated the boards and shot over 60 percent.

The Pioneers eventually extended out to a 31-point lead by the 7:59 media timeout. By that point of the contest, they were shooting 58 percent (14-for-24) while DC was just 2-for-11 from the floor.

Smith helped stabilize Defiance on offense and led the team with eight first-half points. The Jackets closed the first half with a 14-8 scoring advantage but still finished the half with the fewest points of any half this season with 19.

After an opening-possession 3-pointer by Landen Swanner, Transylvania compiled a 14-5 spurt out of the locker room with the help of three consecutive offensive rebounds. However, the Jackets got their footing with strong outside shooting. Will Gehlhausen scored eight straight of Defiance's after the first media stoppage in the second half on a pair of 3-pointers and a layup. He then fed Devin Goodwyn for a trey ahead of a slashing layup by Sherod Brooks to aid an 8-2 run by the Jackets leading up to the 11:51 media timeout.

The Jackets outscored Transylvania, 25-24, over the first 12:42 of the first half. DC's strongest stretch of the game was capped off by a long rebound by Cam Martin that the Michigan native took back for a breakaway dunk. Defiance cleaned up a lot in the second half by shooting 41 percent, made five 3-pointers, and committed just five turnovers over the last 20 minutes of the game.

Transylvania recovered over the last seven minutes of the contest and outscored DC 18-7 to finish out the ballgame. The Pioneers dominated the boards with 49 rebounds compared to 28 by the Yellow Jackets. Transylvania also swung the game with 28 points off turnovers and 23 second-chance points. Jaylan Green led the Pioneers with 12 points but entered the contest among the conference's leaders in scoring at 20.4 points per game.

BRINGING THE STING

• Will Gehlhausen led the Jackets in scoring for the third time this season with 13, which was also a game-high total. He also secured six rebounds to lead Defiance and matched two leaders from Transylvania. In the process, Gehlhausen knocked down a trio of 3-pointers and logged over 36 minutes.
• Jeffrey Smith tallied eight of his 11 in the first half for the Fairview product's first career game in double figures. Smith went 3-for-3 from long distance and also scored twice at the free throw line.
• Sherod Brooks joined Smith and Gehlhausen in double figures with an even 10 points. He made all four free throw attempts despite going 0-for-4 from outside the arc.
• For just the third time this season, the Yellow Jackets took more free throw attempts than their opponent. Defiance finished 11-for-21 at the line with Transy shooting 12-for-19 at the stripe.
• Defiance's 16 made field goals were the fewest in a game this season.

UP NEXT

The Yellow Jackets return to action with another home contest on Wednesday night as Anderson travels to the Weaner Center. Tip-off against the Ravens is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

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