Despite receiving a career-high 21 points from sophomore guard Jesse Reed, the AU men’s basketball team lost their third game of the season at Mount St. Mary 68-64 on Nov. 23.
AU (1-3, 0-0 ) began the game slowly, troubled by early turnovers that allowed Mount St. Mary (1-5, 0-0 NEC) to build up a commanding 23-9 lead, their largest of the game.
“I thought we did a good job adjusting to their full-court pressure in the early going. We got punched in the mouth at the start of the game. We worked to get back on track and played well in the second, but we need to continue to work and get better each day to learn how to secure those types of victories,” AU head coach Mike Brennan told AUEagles.com.
In the first half, AU had 12 turnovers, contributing to its early deficit. At the end of the first half, AU managed to make up some ground, cutting the deficit to six and trailing 33-27.
In the second half, the Eagles continued their strong play as they managed to come back and take their first lead of the game with 5:22 to play in the second half. The last five minutes of the game were a seesaw affair as the lead changed six times, leading to a 59-58 AU lead after a layup by senior center Tony Wroblicky.
Jesse Reed was the standout performer in the game, contributing 21 points on 9-of-12 shooting along with a personal best six rebounds and three assists. Junior John Schoof was AU’s other double-digit scorer, scoring 13 points along with three rebounds and two assists. Sophomore forward Marko Vasic had a solid performance off the bench, scoring seven points and recording seven rebounds in 18 minutes of playing time.
Throughout the game, especially in the second half, AU was plagued by foul trouble. AU shot well overall with a 54.2 shooting percentage compared to Mount St. Mary’s 38.5 percentage but 21 fouls including 16 in the second half alone allowed Mount St. Mary to score 22 points from the free throw line, the difference maker.
AU continues its four game road trip as they travel to New York City to face Columbia University on Nov. 26.
