Senior point guard Kola Alade scored 23 points and fell one rebound shy of a double-double as the #1W Austin College Kangaroos earned the school's first-ever 20 win season with a 74-68 win over #4E Rhodes College.
Alade was 8-for-20 from the field (7-for-8 from the free throw line) and five of his nine rebounds were offensive rebounds. The 'Roos relied on a steady does of second chance opportunities in the win. Austin College held a 26-6 margin in second chance points and out paced Rhodes by a 36-3 mark in points off the bench.
Teammate Josh Saunders chipped in with 16 points on 7-for-10 shooting and tallied eight rebounds while Nick Wade scored 14 points while shooting 4-for-7 from 3-point range.
The game was a tight affair throughout, evidenced by the nine ties and seven lead changes. The 'Roos were able to build a 37-34 halftime lead even though the Lynx shot 50 percent (10-for-20) in the first half.
Rhodes trimmed the Austin College lead to just four, at 59-55, with 7:27 remaining after a pair of Nathan Ollie free throws. However, the 'Roos went on a 9-3 run to build a 10 point lead (its largest of the night) with 3:26 left in the ball game.
The Lynx stayed in the game thanks in large part to their free throw shooting as Rhodes went to the line 22 more times than Austin College. Rhodes sank 30-of-39 from the charity stripe while the 'Roos shot 70.6 percent (12-for-17).
Rhodes was paced by first-year guard Andrew Galow's 22 points. Galow hit 13-of-15 from the line while shooting 4-for-6 from the floor. He also added four rebounds, four assists and two steals. Also leading Rhodes was Reid Hamilton (18 points) and Kory Kilpatrick (11 points).
SCAC Director of Sports Information Jeff Debaldo had the chance to catch up with both head coaches and Austin College senior Kola Alade.
To listen to Rhodes head coach Herb Hilgeman, click here.
To listen to Austin College head coach Rodney Wecker, click here.
To listen to Austin College senior Kola Alade, click here.
