MIAMI SHORES, Fla. – The Daemen College men's basketball team saw its four-game winning streak come to an end following a 78-51 loss to nationally-ranked University of Indianapolis here tonight. The game was part of the Trip Sports Cruzin' Classic being hosted by Barry University.
Daemen, which is a provisional NCAA Division II member this year as it transitions from the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), dropped to 6-3. UIndy, which entered the game ranked ninth in this week's National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) NCAA Division II poll, remained unbeaten on the year at 9-0. The Greyhounds are a member of the powerful Great Lakes Valley Conference, which has had a team claim three of the last four NCAA Division II national championships. It marked Daemen's first-ever game against a nationally-ranked team during its three-year transition to NCAA Division II.
Daemen, which was playing a night after defeating St. Thomas University 91-75, was once again led by senior Gerald Beverly (Rochester, N.Y./Gates Chili) and junior Torrence Dyck, Jr. (Rochester, N.Y./San Jacinto College). Beverly, who registered his first career triple double last night (17 pts, 17 rebs, 12 blks) connected on 5-of-7 shots and totaled 13 points and eight blocks. The reigning East Coast Conference player of the week, he has now scored in double figures in 39-straight games and has recorded at least one block in 42-straight games. After tonight's effort he is averaging 4.9 blocks per game—tops among all NCAA Division II players. Dyck scored 12 points in the first half and finished with 14 points and two steals. Senior Kyle Clifford (West Seneca, N.Y./St. Francis) chipped in 10 points in 16 minutes off the bench.
Junior guard Jordan Loyd (Atlanta, Ga.), a transfer from Division I Furman, connected on 11-of-14 shots and led the Greyhounds with 27 points, eight rebounds and three assists. Junior forward Salim Gloyd (Seattle, Wash.) added 13 points, nine rebounds and three steals off the bench, while senior forward Joe Lawson (Indianapolis, Ind.) chipped in 11 points. The Greyhounds had an efficient 21 assists on 32 baskets, as junior point guard Lucas Barker (Cranbourne, Australia) led the way with eight helpers.
Daemen jumped out to an early 5-2 lead, but the Greyhounds rolled off 11 unanswered points in just 2:15 and took a 15-5 lead following a four-point play by Loyd. The Wildcats answered with buckets by senior Aaron Davis (North Tonawanda, N.Y./North Tonawanda) and Dyck, but back-to-back three-pointers sparked the Greyhounds on a 15-4 run. A baseline jumper by Lawson with 10:41 left in the half capped the run and gave UIndy a 30-13 lead. The Greyhounds later took a 21-point advantage, 38-17, following a three-pointer by senior Dai-Jon Parker (Baton Rouge, La.) with 7:43 left before intermission. The teams traded baskets the rest of the half and the Greyhounds took a 47-26 lead into intermission.
Daemen scored five of the first seven points at the start of the second half, but the Greyhounds answered with an 11-4 run. A three-point play by Gloyd with 12:01 remaining capped the spurt and gave UIndy a 60-35 lead. Daemen came no closer than 19 points the rest of the way.
UIndy's depth and size played a big role, as the Greyhounds posted a 42-21 advantage in rebounds and also finished with a 38-22 edge in points in the paint. The Greyhounds collected 18 offensive rebounds, which they converted into a 19-4 advantage in second-chance points.
Daemen, which entered the game shooting 47-percent from the field for the season, shot just 40-percent (19-48) tonight. The Greyhounds connected on 49-percent (32-for-65) of their shots. Indy hit six three-pointers in the first half and finished 9-for-25 from downtown. Daemen made three three-pointers in each half and shot 6-for-18 (33%) from behind the arc.
Daemen is idle until Jan. 3 when it travels to the University of the District of Columbia for an East Coast Conference game. The Wildcats will then play at Washington Adventist University on Jan. 5 in a rematch of last year's USCAA Tournament semifinal game won by WAU.
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