BETHLEHEM, Pa. --- The Moravian College men's basketball team used a balanced scoring attack to win its fifth straight game as the Greyhounds opened the 2016-17 Landmark Conference season with a 76-63 victory over Elizabethtown College in Johnston Hall Saturday afternoon.
The Hounds are now 5-1 on the season and have their first five-game winning streak since winning five games over late November and early December in 2012.
"I thought we did a good job of staying with things today since we didn't shoot the ball as well as we have been," stated Head Coach Justin Potts, who moved to 16-15 in his second season leading the program. "We got some great efforts off of the bench, and we did a much better job in the second half of getting Brandon some touches around the basket that created some better scoring chances for us. I think the guys learned today that when you are in the league and people know you a little bit better, it is going to be a tough night every night, and I give our guys credit for staying with things."
Freshman guard C.J. Barnes led three Greyhounds in double figures with 15 points to go with three rebounds while sophomore forward Oneil Holder and senior guard Sean Hanna both scored 11 points. Holder added eight rebounds while Hanna had four boards and three assists.
Senior forward Brandon McGuire was held under double figures for the first time this season with nine points to go with a game-high 13 rebounds and a pair of steals. Senior guard Isaiah Jennings also had nine points with three steals and two assists while junior guards Matt Cardonne and Khalil Rhett each added six points and three rebounds. Freshman guard Mike Martino tossed in four points while freshman guard Elijah Davis had three points. Freshman forward John Hargraves contributed four rebounds and two points for the Blue and Grey.
Holder gave Moravian an early 2-0 lead before Elizabethtown moved in front, 8-5. Davis hit a three-pointer to cap a five-point run as the Hounds took a 10-8 lead. However, the Blue Jays answered back and led 16-12 with 12:22 left in the first half. The Greyhounds would eventually take the lead for good, 19-18, on a lay-up by Holder with just under ten minutes left before halftime.
While the Blue and Grey had the advantage, the Blue Jays kept it close until a run by Moravian pushed the lead to eight points, 36-28, on a lay-up by Jennings with 1:50 before the intermission. Elizabethtown scored five points late in the second half as the Greyhounds had a 38-35 advantage at halftime.
Moravian had the lead the entire second half although the Blue Jays closed within two points twice, the final time at 49-47 with 11:52 remaining. The Hounds slowly pulled away at that point and reached a double digit lead, 66-55, on a lay-up by Barnes with six minutes to play.
The Greyhounds are scheduled to return to action on Tuesday, December 6 in a non-conference game at Marywood University with tip-off slated for 7:00 p.m.
