Asbury hangs 122 on Crown College in Georgetown tuneup

Not much to talk about here. Asbury played a bad team that kept the Eagles players from getting too invested in the game, and they won easily 122-65. Brian Johnson put up 22 points and seven rebounds, both team highs. He was also 9-for-12 from the field and a surprising 4-of-5 from the free throw line. Jordan Noble was 8-for-11 from the field for 19 points, Phillip Morrison scored 15, Michael Spann put up 11 points, five rebounds, four assists and four steals, and freshman Peter Vogel got 10 points on 5-for-6 shooting in just five minutes. More numbers quickly:

• Asbury outrebounded Crown 55-26
• The Eagles shot 63.8 percent in the first half — only one of the baskets was not a lay-up or a 3-pointer
• Asbury shot 56.5 percent for the game
• 11-for-38 from 3 should be a concern
• Asbury forced 32 turnovers

Anyway, this didn’t work well as preparation for tomorrow night’s game against #6 Georgetown College. The Tigers are going to be bigger, faster and stronger than Asbury at nearly every position. Head Coach Will Shouse said he has a “pretty good game plan” that, coupled with the obligatory hot shooting, will give Asbury a chance. Color me intrigued.

Not to say that Happy’s boys aren’t invincible. They are coming off a shocker Monday night when they lost 82-80 to Ohio Dominican. The Panthers, much like the Eagles, gave up all kinds of size to the TIgers, but Georgetown made just one 3-pointer all game and never put ODU away. This may be one of those games where the full-court press will be the most important facet for Shouse’s team, creating turnovers while conceding a few easy lay-ups on the other end. Hopefully for Asbury, the 3-point shot is falling and the press is just frustrating enough that they are in the game until the final five minutes when Shouse can pull out all the stops. Last year’s team tried to battle with Georgetown’s post players, and it lost 90-54. It never hurts to try something new.