Game Recap: Men's Basketball Wins 73-70 Over Roadrunners

With all active members of the team scoring in last night's nail-biter, the Montgomery County Community College Mustangs men's basketball team defeated the Gloucester County College Roadrunners 73-70.

The Roadrunners put the Mustangs in a hole for the majority of the first half, but managed to fall behind by two points before the close of the period. Leading 38-36 going into the second half of play, the Mustangs hoped to maintain their lead. However, the Roadrunners bounced back to build up a 68-58 lead with 3:15 left in the play. 

The teams sparred from one end of the court to the other for over 90 seconds without scoring before the Mustangs finally put in a basket. Down 60-68, Shane Isett hit two three-point shots in a row for the Mustangs to cut the Roadrunners' lead down to 70-68 with just under a minute remaining.

Chris Uhrich made a crucial steal seconds later. He was fouled on the play and earned one of two free throws to bring the Mustangs within one point of tying it up. Another steal came quickly afterward from Tre Budd, who converted the lay-up attempt, giving the Mustangs a 71-70 lead. In the closing seconds of the game, solid defense from Dexter Shy forced a miss by the Roadrunners, allowing Budd to knock in two free throws and secure the three-point victory.

"Our guys continue to amaze us every night with their heart.  We struggled offensively for most of the game, but just refused to quit," said Mustangs Head Coach Denny Surovec. "As has been the on-going theme for us, we are getting contributions from everyone.  Demeno's return from the flu was a big boost.  Isett hit two clutch threes late in the game.  Budd and Shy both had big defensive impacts late in the game."

Second year sophomore Tre Budd led the Mustangs with a double-double of 19 points and 10 rebounds. Teammate Nick Demeno returned from a bout of the flu to match Budd with 19 points as well. Freshman Shane Isett flexed his offensive strength, tallying 15 points and five assists, while Athlete of the Week Chris Uhrich added 10 points and nine rebounds. Rounding out the winning performance were Dexter Shy with six points and six assists, Ryan Casper with three points and Cameron Green with one.

The Mustangs are now 10-7 overall and 8-3 in the NJCAA EPAC. Next the Mustangs will play at home against the Delaware County Community College Phantoms on Thursday Jan. 30.