Box Score Larry Farmer's 20 points and Dimonde Hale's double-double helped Denison to a 66-54 victory over Mount St. Joseph on Wednesday night at Livingston Gymnasium.
The Big Red shot 56 percent from the field and got off to a red-hot start thanks to Farmer's spark off the bench. The senior was 7-for-10 from the field and 3-of-4 from beyond the arc in 14 minutes of action in the first half that resulted in 17 points.
DU took a nine point lead into the locker room and over the first 10 minutes of the second half the home team would push its lead out to 60-38 with 9:21 to play. The Lions would respond with a 12-2 run over the next six minutes but a 10-point deficit with 2:19 to play would loom too large for the visitors to overcome.
While Farmer was the star of the first half, Hale came through with eight points, six rebounds and two blocks in the second half to end with 16 points, 10 rebounds and three blocked shots. Hale was 6-for-7 from the field.
Farmer ended the game with 20 points, seven boards, three assists and two blocked shots. After starting the first eight games of the season, Farmer has come off the bench in each of the last two games and is averaging 23.0 ppg and 7.5 rpg. Hale and Farmer are both on similar paths toward the 1,000 career point plateau. Hale needs only 32 points to reach the milestone and Farmer is just 75 points away. Should they reach the mark, the duo would be the 18th and 19th players in Denison history to achieve the feat.
Chipping in eight points was sophomore Alex Longi and senior Brett Tiberi. Senior Mike Garabedian scored six points and had five rebounds in 22 minutes while senior point guard Jim Leffew dished out six assists.
The Lions were led by Andy Countryman's 13 points and four rebounds. David Lane posted six assists and seven steals in 40 minutes of action.
The victory snaps a three-game losing skid and sends Denison into exams and the holidays on a winning note. The Big Red returns to the court on Dec. 31 when they travel to Washington, Pa. for a 2 p.m. tip-off against Washington & Jefferson.
