JANUARY 29, 2003
BOB ZIADIE
MONARCH MEN FALL TO WILKES, 77-64
WILKES-BARRE -- The King's College men's basketball
team got off to a fast start but lost its offensive momentum as the
visiting Monarchs dropped a 77-64 victory over cross-town rival Wilkes
University Wednesday in the Marts Center.
With the loss, King's falls to 12-6 overall and 5-2
in conference play. Wilkes improved to 13-4 and 4-3/
King’s came of the gates quickly in the first
half, building a 16-9 lead on six points by Kasim Holloman. But Wilkes
changed from a man-to-man defense wand began to whittle away. The Colonels
went on a 15-3 run, keyed by six points from Rashawn Pressley and a
three-pointer by Phil Bonczewski, giving Wilkes a 24-19 lead with 12:01
left in the half. The Colonels would later extend the lead to 40-30 on a
basket by Alex Hairston and a three-pointer by Dave Plisko with 3:19
remaining in the half.
King’s would cut the margin to 40-35 on a basket
by Holloman, a pair of foul shots by Landon Gabriel, and one-of-two free
throws by Dave Marks with 2:09 left. But Evan Walter would score with 1:52
left, then add one-of-two foul shots with 1:07 remaining to give the
Colonels a 43-35 lead. The teams would trade baskets to close out the half
as Wilkes took a 45-37 lead in to the break.
In the second half, King's would again start quickly
with an 11-6 run and close to within 51-48 on a basket by Steve Hite with
14:34 remaining. The Colonels would once again answer with a 13-2 run over
their own and took a 64-50 lead on a bucket by Joe Stein with 10:04 left.
The Monarchs would draw no closer than 10 points the remainder of the
contest.
Holloman led King's with 16 points but tallied just
four in the second half. Marty O'Hora followed with 13 points and seven
rebounds while Dannie Evans netted 11 points but was also held to four in
the final stanza.
The Monarchs will next travel to Center Valley to
face DeSales University Saturday at 3:00 p.m.
