Skip to main content

Foresters hold off Purdue North Central, 90-78

Huntington University freshman Daniel Woll maneuvers in the lane against visiting Purdue North Central on Tuesday, Nov. 5.
Huntington University freshman Daniel Woll maneuvers in the lane against visiting Purdue North Central on Tuesday, Nov. 5. Photo by Scott Trauner.

Shane Merryman scored 24 points and pulled down nine rebounds as the Huntington University men's basketball team held off visiting Purdue North Central, 90-78, on Tuesday, Nov. 5.

Merryman hit 10 of 13 shots from the field as Huntington improved its record to 3-0 on the season.

Merryman scored six points as HU jumped out to a 10-0 lead at the start of the game, but PNC fought back to tie the contest at 20-all with 6:54 in the first half. Merryman hit a two-pointer and a three-pointer to spark a 10-0 HU run which gave the Foresters a 30-20 advantage with 3:58 left in the half, and HU went into halftime with a 42-31 lead.

After North Central scored the first bucket of the second half, a Merryman basket gave HU a double digit lead it would maintain for the rest of the contest.

A game after setting a school record for shooting by hitting 75 percent of its field goal tries, the Foresters cooled off to a more normal 55.2 performance against PNC, hitting 32 of 58 from the field to go along with a 20 of 28 effort from the free-throw line for 71.4 percent.

T.J. Short scored 16 points for HU, and Derek Hinen and Tyler Ault added 13 and 11, respectively.

PNC, 0-2, was led by Myles Merchand with 23 points. Ty Kowalkowski tallied 15 points and Justin Reynolds had 10 points.

The Panthers also had a pretty good night from the field, hitting 31 of 59 hosts for 52.5 percent. They hit 13 of 20 free throw tries for 65 percent.

Hinen added a game-high eighth assists to his efforts for HU, and Ault added four asissts. HU had 21 for the contest.

HU held a 34-30 rebounding edge. Freshman Daniel Woll had six for HU.