HISTORY! Midway (Ky.) fends off Bearcats for first-ever victory

12/9/2016 12:00:00 AM

Owensboro, Ky. – It might have taken longer than he and his team expected, but head coach, Joe Krupinski and the Midway University men's basketball team picked up their first-ever victory when they defeated Brescia (Ky.) on Saturday, Dec. 3.

The Eagles led by as many as 17 only to see Brescia come back and take a one point lead late, but Midway was able to battle back to secure the 79-73 win for the programs first-ever victory.

"I am really happy for our team that they finally broke through and came out with a victory," noted Krupinski. "It is always great to get a conference win on the road, but the fact that it is the first-ever men's basketball win at Midway adds a little something special to it for our team."

The Eagles (1-10, 1-2 RSC) placed four players in double figures led by freshman, Brandon Maxwell (Leesville, La.) who finished with 18 points. The guard duo of Brandon Johnson (Louisville, Ky.) and Bryson Harris (Louisville, Ky.) chipped in with 16 apiece.

Senior, Tyler Smothers (Lexington, Ky.) added 12 points, while Will Hudson (Calhoun, Ky.) provided a spark off the bench with 11. Johnson and Smothers helped the Eagles win the rebounding battle, 37-32, by pulling down nine and eight rebounds, respectively.

The game didn't start the way the Eagles were hoping as they faced a 10-1 deficit less than four minutes into the game. Midway would be forced to come from behind through most of the first half, but the Eagles were able to close the stanza on a high note.

Facing a 32-25 deficit, the Eagles began to battle back and close the half on a 10-0 run to take a 35-32 lead into the locker room. Hudson stepped into a rhythm triple to give the Eagles their first lead at 33-32, while Krizell Mitchell (Detroit, Mich.) got a put back layup to end the half.

Midway stretched their lead out to eight to open the second half, but Brescia cut the deficit in half at 46-42. The Eagles, however, answered with a 17-4 run to extend their lead to it largest of the game at 63-46 with nine minutes remaining.

The Bearcats came crawling back to take a one point lead, 73-72, with just under two minutes remaining. After getting a stop of the defensive end, Bryson Harris nailed a trey from the top of the key to give his team the 75-73 lead.

The triple by Harris ignited what turned out to be a 7-0 run for the Eagles. Brandon Johnson got a put back layup, while Will Hudson capped off the 79-73 win with a breakaway layup.

"We showed some resilience throughout the game and hopefully our challenging schedule so far has helped us prepare us for more games like this one as we go through the River States Conference," said Krupinski.

The Eagles shot 49.3 percent (33-67) from the field and 37.5 percent (6-16) from long range, while Brescia shot 43.7 percent (31-71) from the floor and 25 percent (5-20) from three.

The Eagles are back in action on Saturday, December 10, when they take on Bellarmine (Ky.), a perennial power in the NCAA D-II ranks, in an exhibition at 3:15 p.m. ET.