RedStorm shuts down Bobcats

Rio Grande Sports Information
     RIO GRANDE, Ohio - The University of Rio Grande took advantage of a sloth-like start by visiting Bryant & Stratton College and went on to post a 69-49 win over the Bobcats, Saturday afternoon, in non-conference men's basketball action at the Newt Oliver Arena.
     The RedStorm closed out an unbeaten six-game homestand and improved to 7-1 with a seventh consecutive victory.
     Bryant & Stratton, a member of the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) in its first season as a four-year institution, dropped to 2-6 with a second straight loss.
     The Bobcats, who arrived just 35 minutes prior to the scheduled tipoff, hit just three of their first 21 field goal attempts and scored only six points in the first 13 minutes of the contest as Rio Grande built a 15-point lead.
     The RedStorm stretched their cushion to 19 points by halftime, 35-16, and to as many as 21 points after a three-pointer by redshirt junior Jaelin Johnson (Fairmont, WV) made it 40-19 with 18:16 left in the game.
     Bryant & Stratton twice shaved to the deficit to 13 points - 55-42 after a jumper by Greg Thurman with 8:18 left and 61-48 following a bucket by Daylen Patterson with 3:11 remaining - but got no closer the rest of the way.
     Rio Grande closed the contest on an 8-1 run to set the final score.
     Johnson led the RedStorm with 21 points and three steals, in addition to grabbing eight rebounds.
     Junior Trey Robertson (Waverly, OH) added 11 points in the winning effort, while senior Eric Butler (Orlando, FL) had 10 points and a game-high four assists, surpassing the 200-assist mark for his collegiate career in the process.
     Junior Jaylin Fox (South Haven, MI) had a season-high 13 rebounds for Rio Grande, which played without the services of one of its regulars - graduate senior forward Milan Square (Youngstown, OH), who missed the game due to a family emergency.
     Rio finished 26-for-63 overall (41.3%), while going 10-for-10 at the foul line and enjoying a 44-36 edge in rebounding.
     Bryant & Stratton was led by Detric Hearst, who scored 10 of his team-high 16 points in the second half. Phillip Byrd pulled down 12 rebounds in the loss, while Thurman collected a trio of steals.
     The Bobcats, who finished the first half at just under 26 percent shooting, was 20-for-63 for the game (31.7%), including 1-for-15 from three-point range (6.7%).
     Rio Grande is scheduled to return to the court next Saturday when it travels to Williamsburg, Ky. to face ninth-ranked University of the Cumberlands. Tipoff is set for 3 p.m. at the O. Wayne Rollins Center.