PITTSBURGH, Pa. – The No. 5 nationally ranked Mount Union men's basketball team defeated Chatham 97-73 in a non-conference matchup on Saturday afternoon.
The Purple Raiders (2-0) had five players score in double figures, with senior
Christian Parker (Canton / GlenOak) and sophomore
Corey Hudson (Columbus / Pickerington) leading the way with 16 points apiece. Junior
Marcus Steele (Solon) added in 11 points, with senior
Darrell Newsom (Twinsburg) and sophomore
Caleb Laurich (Akron / Copley) both scoring 10 to round out the Raiders in double digits.
The Cougars (1-1) were led by Isaiah Smith who scored a team-high 16 points, with Diaun Pinkett adding in 13 and Geoffrey Helm scoring 12 points.
Chatham would jump out to an early 6-2 lead before a layup by Laurich sparked a 15-0 Mount Union run over the next four minutes to give the Raiders a 17-6 lead with 13:30 remaining in the first half. The Cougars would cut the lead down to seven at multiple points over the final 13 minutes of the first half but wouldn't be able to get closer than that as the Raiders would take a nine-point lead into the halftime break.
Both teams would open the second half trading baskets before a layup by Laurich would start a 17-6 run over 3:02 of game time to give Mount Union their largest lead of the game at 80-57 with six and a half minutes to play. Chatham wouldn't be able to get closer than 21 over the final six minutes as the Raiders would go on to win 97-73.
The Raiders are on the road again next when they travel to Scranton on Wednesday, November 15 to take on the Royals at 7 p.m.
