Trojans Drop Home Clash with No. 21 USF
UPLAND, Ind. – Taylor slowed the Crossroads League’s top-rated offense and hottest team on Saturday afternoon but could not pull the upset over No. 21 Saint Francis, as the Cougars used a late push to pull out a sixth-straight win in a 70-54 outcome.
Saint Francis (16-4, 6-2 CL) entered play scoring 87.7 points per game and also leading the league at 39.6 percent from three-point range but managed only 70 points on a 30.4-percent clip from deep against the Trojan defense. In addition to holding USF nearly 18 points below its season average, Taylor forced six more turnovers than the season average for the Cougars, turning the guests over 15 times.
Despite the strong defensive effort from TU, Saint Francis led throughout much of the afternoon and placed four players in double figures in the scoring column.
A 17-5 stretch from USF midway through the opening half helped the Cougars take a 30-23 lead to the break. That gap swelled to 15 by the halfway point of the second stanza before Taylor used a quick stretch to claw to within six.
Kaden Fuhrmann started that push with one of his five treys in the game, with Jason Hubbard following that up with a two-point hoop. Four-straight Taylor free throws capped the 9-0 spurt and closed the deficit to 49-43 with 9:03 showing on the clock.
That would be as close as the Trojans could get though, as the Cougars regained momentum from there and pulled away for the 16-point win.
Hubbard and Fuhrmann were the lone Trojans in double figures, combining for 35 points. Hubbard netted 18 points to jump five spots to No. 22 on TU’s all-time scoring charts with 1,479-career points and added eight rebounds, three blocks, three assists and one steal.
Fuhrmann finished at 17 points with five makes from three-point range in 10 tries to notch his 15th game of the season with multiple triples and his fifth outing with at least five long-range connections.
Other individual highlights for the Purple and Gold included Jackson Lewis with five assists and three steals, Aaron Hahn with eight rebounds and Grant Niehaus with seven points.
Taylor (7-12, 3-5 CL) is scheduled to play again on Tuesday, January 18, with a 7:00 pm tip at No. 7 Indiana Wesleyan (17-3, 8-0 CL). All Taylor students with ID will get into that game for free.
Recent Comments