ANDERSON, S.C. – Despite being one of the lowest scoring games offensively this season by the Anderson University (3-0) men's basketball team, the Trojans were able to win a defensive battle with the Flying Fleet of Erskine College 68-47 in the Abney Athletic Center on Wednesday, November 15.
Senior Garrett Denbow (Ashland, Ohio) was the only Trojan to crack the double-digit mark in the points column on the night as he recorded 27. Junior Jackson Greco (Canton, Ga.) was the next highest scorer with eight points. The Trojans major advantage on the evening came in the rebound department as they were able to top the Fleet 51-39 with sophomore Jared White (Bowie, Md.) leading the way for the Black and Gold, cleaning the glass nine times. Anderson was also able to force 19 turnovers with sophomore Cole Middleton (Atlanta, Ga.) claiming a team-high three steals.
"Really excited about the way we came out in the first half on defense," said head coach Jimmie Williams. "Thankful to have a team that leans into what we are doing on the defensive end and aren't only interested in offense."
"We have so many great examples of this, but the greatest example I can give tonight was Garrett Denbow. We are 3-0 in large part because of his defense. People will look at the box score and see that he's averaging 20-something points, but what I'm the most excited about is that he has turned himself into a defensive stopper we can rely on."
Garrett Denbow was able to score the first seven points of the game himself for the Trojans and they were able to take the 13-6 advantage into the first media. Over the next four minutes the Trojans defense began to ramp up as they didn't allow the Fleet to score a single point at the under-12-minute timeout, continuing to lead 18-6.
While the Fleet were able to put five more points on the board before the next stoppage, the Trojans were also able to further their point total, taking the 23-11 lead. Another stretch of shutout basketball for the Anderson defense kept the Fleet in check as they only allowed seven more points to be scored in the rest of the opening half, taking the 43-18 lead into the break.
"Cole Middleton continues to work inside and on the glass and is a tough matchup. He frustrates people with his defense of presence as well."
The second half was the same story as they first, though the Fleet were able to close the gap to as little as 18 at one point, the Black and Gold's defensive presence proofed to be too much to handle throughout the evening as the Trojans continued to stretch their lead. That lead came to a peak at 28 in the late goings of the contest and though the Fleet were able to shrink that a little, the Trojans took home the 68-47 final score.
"Another great thing about tonight is our depth was on full display. Nobody played for more than 20 minutes, and everyone contributed. I love this team!"
The Trojans hit the road for the first time this season as they make the trip to Banner Elk, N.C. to take on Lees-McRae on Saturday, November 18 for a 4:00 p.m. tip.
