BETHLEHEM, Pa. --- Junior forward Oneil Holder became the 17th player in school history to reach 500 career rebounds and his 12th career double-double of 24 points and 13 rebounds helped the Moravian College men's basketball team to a 93-81 win over Drew University in Johnston Hall Wednesday evening as the Greyhounds clinched one of the top two seeds in the 2018 Landmark Conference Tournament with the victory.
The Hounds won their seventh straight game and improved to 18-6 overall and 10-3 in Landmark Conference play, one game ahead of the Rangers and Juniata College, who play each other on Saturday meaning Moravian could only finish in a tie with one should the Greyhounds fall at The Catholic University of America on Saturday in the regular season finale.
"I thought our guys did a good job tonight, and I thought the atmosphere in Johnston Hall was great. I appreciate people coming out to support us," stated Head Coach Justin Potts, who has the Greyhounds heading to the postseason at home for the second straight winter. "We talk about as a team just trying to play as good as we can by the end of the year, and I think lately we've done that. I think that showed again tonight. Our depth really helped us, and our guys did a good job of adjusting to some defenses that they threw at us. I thought it was a good team win, and we need to find a way to get one on Saturday and then see what happens when the postseason starts."
Holder, who had his fifth double-double of the year, is the ninth player in school history with over 1,000 points and 500 rebounds in a career, now 14th in school history with 506 rebounds and 19th in scoring with 1,063 points. Four other Greyhounds scored in double figures on Senior Night in Johnston Hall including junior guard Jimmy Murray, who had 19 points, eight assists and two rebounds as he moved into 20th in school history with 1,061 points.
Sophomore forward C.J. Barnes tossed in 16 points with a pair of rebounds while junior guard Nicholas Casazza had 12 points on four three-pointers to go along with four assists and a pair of steals. Senior guard Matt Cardonne had 10 points in his final regular season game in Johnston Hall while senior forward Khalil Rhett had three points and two rebounds.
Sophomore forward Addis Ralph contributed seven points while sophomore guard Mike Martino had six rebounds, four assists and a pair of steals. Junior guard Will Brazukas added three assists and two points while senior forward Aaron Brown also saw action in his final home game.
"This senior class has been a great representation of Moravian Basketball," noted Potts. "Their hard work, dedication and commitment to the program have been great examples to their teammates. Matt, Khalil and Aaron have all impacted Moravian Basketball and for that I thank them. I look forward to watching all 3 young men continue to grow and develop and chase their dreams."
The Greyhounds connected on 29-of-60 field goal attempts, 14-of-31 three-pointers and 21-of-25 free throws, and Moravian now has a school-record 276 three-pointers made on the year. The Hounds' pressure defense forced the Rangers into 23 turnovers in the contest.
Murray opened the scoring with a quick jumper before Drew scored the next six points for the first on 10 lead changes in the game. Ralph hit a three-pointer to put the Greyhounds back in front, 7-6, and a three-pointer by Cardonne had the Blue and Grey leading 13-8 six minutes into action. The Rangers came back for a 16-15 edge before the Hounds went up 20-16 on a jumper by Cardonne at the 7:21 mark.
Drew answered back with a 10-0 run to take a 26-20 lead, and the Rangers lead 29-23 with 4:21 until the intermission. Moravian went on a 19-4 run to end the half with Holder connected on a three-point play to send the Greyhounds to the locker room with a 42-33 advantage.
The Rangers opened the second half with a three-pointer to pull within six points but that would be as close as Moravian would let the score get the rest of the night. Holder scored on a jumper with just over nine minutes remaining for the Hounds' biggest lead of the contest at 16 points, 68-52. Drew would get no closer than nine points the rest of the way as the Greyhounds completed their four-game home stand by averaging 96 points and winning by an average of 20 points.
Moravian is scheduled to finish its 2017-18 regular season on Saturday, February 17 in a Landmark Conference game at Catholic with tip-off set for 2:00 p.m. in Washington, D.C. With a victory, the Greyhounds can clinch the top seed in the 2018 Landmark Conference Tournament.
