DELTA DROPS SECOND STRAIGHT GAME

University Center, MI-

The Delta College men's basketball team had a huge home game against the first place Henry Ford Hawks Saturday afternoon.  With the win, the Pioneers could keep their title hopes alive and move up in the MCCAA Eastern Conference standings.  With a loss, the Pioneer's lofty goal of winning the league would suffer dramatically and they would no longer control their own destiny.                               

The first half started off with the Hawks jumping out to an early 14-9 lead.  A Cedric Moten three-point play followed up by a Deon Gray put-back tied the game up 14-14 with twelve minutes left to play.  Back to back three pointers by Justin Person followed up by a Peyton Miller put-back gave the Pioneers a 23-17 lead.  Henry Ford would battle back and with five minutes left, tied the score back up 29-29.  The remainder of the half was dominated by the Hawks and a 17-8 run gave them a 46-37 lead heading into the locker room.               

In the first two minutes of the second half, Henry Ford expanded their lead to 52-41.  A Jalen Fykes offensive rebound and put-back got the Pioneers going and fueled a 17-5 run giving the Delta men a 58-57 lead with just over thirteen minutes left.  The next nine minutes, the Pioneers would be held to just eleven points and the Hawks would regain the lead 77-69.  With three minutes remaining, Torandis Mack found Justin Person for a three pointer and the Pioneers were within two, 77-75.  That would end up being as close as the Pioneers would get and the Hawks proved to be too much to handle down the stretch.  Henry Ford would outscore the Delta men 13-8 down the stretch and seal the 90-83 victory.                        

"We need to do a better job playing with a sense of urgency," said Head Coach Carlos McMath.  "We need to be the aggressors right from the beginning of the game.  With that urgency we also need to have a sense of discipline.  We can't let factors outside of our control affect our game." 

Leading the way for the Pioneers was Virgil Walker Jr. with 22 points, 12 rebounds, and 2 blocks.  Martel Handley added 20 points and 8 rebounds.  Justin Person had 15 points and Cedric Moten added 10.    

"From this point on we are playing for playoff seeding," said McMath.  "Realistically we can finish anywhere from 2^nd to 7^th.  We need to get back on track and push to get in the top half so we can host a playoff game."           

The Pioneers (14-5, 6-5) will host Mott Community College (14-9, 3-6) on Wednesday night.  The Bears have been ranked in the top twenty-five throughout the season but were forced to forfeit several games early in the conference season.  The last time the Pioneers and the Bears matched up, Mott won 109-107 in double overtime.  Game time is set for 7:30 pm.