Colonels Pull Away from Pacers with Strong Second Half
Marywood fell to Wilkes 66-48 to open the 2013 Cross County Challenge

Colonels Pull Away from Pacers with Strong Second Half

Men's Basketball - 1/2/2013 8:28:00 PM

Box Score

Wilkes-Barre, PA - Host Wilkes University improved offensive output and kept up defensive pressure throughout as the Colonels downed Marywood University 66-48 in opening round action of the 2013 Cross County Challege.  Wilkes (6-4) got a game-high 26 points from Chris Shovlin and will take on the University of Scranton, 81-66 winners over King's College earlier in the evening, Thursday night at 8:00pm in what will be the Championship game.  Marywood (2-8) dropped their third straight despite a 19-point effort from Kendall Harris and will take on King's College at 6:00pm at Wilkes' Martz Center tomorrow.

After both teams missed their opening shots to start the game, Cameron Hinkel got the Colonels on the board with a layup a minute into the contest.  Neither team could gain more than a four point advantage throughout the first half, with Marywood's largest lead coming at the 13:24 mark (9-5) and the Colonels' holding a three-point lead twice in the opening frame.  Wilkes held Marywood scoreless for the opening 2:15 of the game and again later in the half for a four minute stretch, while the Pacers kept the hosts off the board for three-minute spans two times in the first.

The two teams would trade leads over the opening six minutes of the second until Wilkes grabbed a one-point lead (34-33) on a Shovlin layup at the 13:58 mark which sparked a 19-3 run for the home side to put the game out of reach.  Shovlin, who had just six points in the first half, exploded in the second, shooting 8 of 11 from the floor which included a 4 of 5 mark from behind the arc. 

Both teams were cold in the first half with Marywood connecting on just 33% of their shots and Wilkes for 35%, but in the second half the Colonels connected on nearly 57% of their efforts while holding the Pacers to 37% shooting.  Wilkes committed just nine turnovers while forcing Marywood into 21. 
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