Behind 26 points by junior David Smith and 23 by sophomore Matt Miller, the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy men’s basketball team cruised to a 74-52 road victory over Moravian on Monday night. The win was the Mariners’ fifth-straight Landmark victory and brings the squad to within one game of Elizabethtown, who currently holds the fourth and final playoff spot with two games remaining.
USMMA improves to 8-15 (5-9 Landmark) with the win, while the Greyhounds fall to 5-19 (3-12 Landmark).
It was Smith’s eighth 20-plus point game of the season and Miller’s sixth, and it was the third time the duo both scored 20-or-more in the same game – all three coming in the past five victories. Junior Preston Padgett recorded a double-double with 11 points and a game-high 10 rebounds.
The Greyhounds led for the opening 10 minutes of the game until a three-pointer by Smith at 9:50 gave the Mainers third first advantage of the night, 12-10. USMMA went on to build up a 12-point lead over the next seven-plus minutes after a 17-7 run capped off by a three by Miller to make it 29-17 at 2:33. Moravian finished the half with seven straight points and the Mariners went into the locker with a 29-24 advantage.
The Merchant Marine lead was cut down to just one in the opening two minutes of the second half, but another huge run for the Mariners – this a 12-1 spurt – put the visitors ahead by 12, 41-29 at 14:27.
Courtesy https://www.usmmasports.com
