Golden Bears win SIAC opener
Box Score
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- Miles men's basketball coach
Leon Douglas did not want his team to go more than 40 days without a victory heading into Monday night's Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference opener against Benedict.
But while his team was traveling through the wilderness of winless road trips, Douglas simply looked at it as a process to get his team prepared for conference play and a run at a league championship in March. After one game, it certainly looks like the Golden Bears are on the right path.
Miles had five players - all of who came off the bench - score in double figures, grabbed a double-digit lead within seven minutes, and never trailed in a 75-56 win over Benedict at Bill Harris Arena. The win snapped a six-game losing skid for the Golden Bears (3-9, 1-0 SIAC) and marks the second straight season the team has notched a victory over the Tigers (5-6, 2-2).
The offense was carried early by
Javier McKinney, who had two buckets in the 13-2 run that started the game. He scored all 12 of his points in the first half, attacking the basket and knocking down shots from the outside. But McKinney is apt to do that on any given night.
The surprise contributions came from elsewhere.
Henrique Cistrunk, who had not played in any of the Golden Bears first 11 contests, played 28 solid minutes and scored 10 points.
Joshua Samuels, playing in his first official game of the season, scored seven points in the first half, the last two coming with less than 30 seconds remaining to send Miles into the break with a 41-25 lead. But early, his primary job was not necessarily to score - which he can certainly do - but to try and slow Benedict sharpshooter Quayshun Hawkins, who entered the game red-hot from beyond the 3-point arc. He didn't completely accomplish the feat, as Hawkins finished with a team-high 15 points, but he did have his hand in Hawkins' six turnovers. In fact, as a team, the Tigers turned the ball over 21 times which led to 30 points, uncharacteristic of a squad that came in averaging just 10.5 turnovers per game.
The Golden Bears took the suspense out of any Benedict comeback attempt by scoring the first 11 points of the second half, punctuated by a Samuels 3-pointer. A steal and layup by
Joshua Johnson (12 points, five rebounds, three assist, four steals) gave Miles its largest lead, 56-27, just six minutes into the final period. The Tigers would never get closer than the final 19-point margin.
Keon Scott had 11 points for Benedict. Samuels led all scorers with 17 points while
Shaquille Cook played a great all-around game (11 points, seven rebounds, three assists, three blocks, two steals) for Miles, which hosts Claflin at the Bill Harris Arena Wednesday at 7:30 p.m.
