Men’s basketball team opens season with wins

    The Maryville College men’s basketball team is off to a nice start with wins over regional foes in Centre College and Emory & Henry College, making the Scots 2-0 in the young season.

    In the season opener at Centre College in Danville, KY, the Scots were carried by senior Spencer Shoffner and junior Tyler Spicer to finish with a 70-62 win over the Colonels. Centre led the Scots with a score of 27-31 at the half, but Maryville surged late by outscoring the Colonels with 43 points in the second half to claim their first victory of the season. Both Shoffner and Spicer scored 17 points in the Scots rout of their first opponent.

    Along the way, Maryville also managed to take care of the stats sheet by winning in the rebounds and assists columns over their regional rivals.

    For his contributions against the Colonels, Spicer earned his first ever USA South Conference player of the week. Spicer surpassed his career high of 10 points with 17 against the Colonels and added 2 assists. The Burns, Tenn. native shot 7 of 11 from the floor and was perfect from the free throw line. Spicer also recorded 9 rebounds, which left him just short of a double-double.

    Following the win over Centre, the Scots had their home opener the next week against Emory & Henry College, which resulted in another win with a final score of 81-70. Maryville had a well-balanced attack with four Scots scoring in double figures

    The Scots started off hot pushing a 19-9 run with 14:25 left in the half. The Wasps did start a run of their own, but the Scots still managed to edge out the first half with a score of 31-37. In the second half Maryville’s strong offensive show continued as the Scots managed to outscore the Wasps 39-44 to earn their second victory of the season.