The Denison University men's basketball team shot 50 percent from the field and had five players score in double figures as they knocked off the Quakers of Earlham College 78-69 in North Coast Athletic Conference action on Saturday afternoon in Granville.
Like they did in their conference opener a week ago, Denison got off to a fast start by scoring 16 of the game's first 20 points. The DU fans inside Livingston Gymansium really came alive when first-year Dimonde Hale (Columbus, Ohio/Northland) hammered a dunk off a pass from junior Larry Farmer (Gurnee, Ill./Warren Township) which gave the Big Red an 18-4 advantage with 13:15 on the clock. Denison led by as many as 17 (27-10) in the opening frame before taking a 37-26 edge into the intermission.
After trailing by double-digits for the majority of the second half, the Quakers A.J. Sutherlin drained a three-pointer at the 3:45 mark to trim the margin to 69-60. With the momentum seemingly in Earlham's favor following a defensive rebound, sophomore Mike Garabedian (La Grange, Ill./Nazareth Academy) forced a critical steal and drew an intentional foul with 2:19 left in regulation. Garabedian made both free throws to push the DU lead back to 11 (71-60), and, just 19 seconds later, fellow sophomore Brett Tiberi (Columbus, Ohio/Upper Arlington) hit a jumper that ultimately locked the game up for the home team.
The Big Red's 29-of-58 performance from the floor marked the second time this season they shot 50 percent or better from the field. DU also pulled down a season-high 40 rebounds compared to Earlhams 26 boards.
Hale led all Denison scores with a career-high 18 points on 7-of-11 from the floor and 4-of-8 from the charity stripe. Senior Chris Luther (Dayton, Ohio/Oakwood) finished with 16 points, while Farmer recorded a double-double for the second-straight game with 10 points and a game-high 12 rebounds. Garabedian and Tiberi also chipped in 13 and 10 points, respectively.
The Quakers were led offensively by Sutherlin's game-high 31 points on 9-of-18 (50 percent) from the floor and 6-of-10 (60 percent) performance from behind the arc. Shane Heidt scored nine tallies and dished off six assists, while Justin Barger paced the team in rebounding with six boards.
With the win, Denison (2-6) joins Wooster and Hiram atop the NCAC standings with a 2-0 mark, while Earlham falls to 3-5 on the year and 1-1 in the conference. The Big Red returns to action on Tuesday (Dec. 15) when they host Bethany College at 8 p.m.
