By Kyle McFadden
EMMITSBURG- When Jamion Christian sat down over the off-season with his coaching staff to formulate the schedule of opponents that his team would go up against, he took the bull by the horns. Daunting dates with Power-5 schools Maryland, Ohio State, Washington and Gonzaga lied ahead. But that didn’t faze Christian, not one bit. Despite dropping those four games by a substantial amount, and then the next two by the skin of their teeth, before anyone could blink, the win column stood with a doughnut hole and six losses were chalked up in just as many games.
“Our record doesn’t define how good we are,” Christian, the head coach said. “This early in the season, you’re supposed to learn.”
Christian, the teacher that he is, exploited that statement to full capacity. In the home opener on Tuesday night, the Mountaineers (1-6) came out in full force, surging ahead for their first win of the 2015-2016 campaign in the 81-56 victory over American.
“I’m proud of them,” Christian said. “I just love this team.”
For the first 15 minutes, it appeared the game would come down to a handful of possessions when it’s all said and done. Momentum teeter-tottered back and forth, with the score 24-23, on favor of Mount St. Mary’s.
That’s when Christian stomped his foot on the floor vigorously and called timeout.
“People look over the fact that we’re a young basketball team,” Christian said. “Each day we are growing.”
After the timeout, BK Ashe fueled an 11-6 run for the final 4:44 of the first half, accounting for seven of those points in that span. The Mount took a 35-29 lead into the half.
Despite being up, Christian was not satisfied with the pace his team showcased. How does one ramp up the tempo? For Christian that could be an easy answer. To call upon the 5-foot-6 roadrunner lead-guard of Junior Robinson.
“That’s my kind of basketball,” Robinson said with a rising smile.
In the first minute of the second half, Robinson pounced on a loose ball and then quickly shuffled a pass in transition that was slammed home by Chris Wray that ignited the Mountaineer faithful. This would be the start of 16-1 second half run that lasted 5:20. Robinson was accountable for 12 of the 16 points scored on the marquee run.
“That was fun, man,” Robinson said, who played a pivotal role in his team scoring 35 points off turnovers. “We want to play like that every night.”
Once the Mount jumped out to a 51-30 lead, the senior 7-foot center, Taylor Danaher, put the nail in the coffin – totaling 14 points in the final 14 minutes of the game. He never missed a shot the entire night, going a perfect seven for seven from the field and five of five from the free throw line.
“It makes the game easier when my guards are giving me perfect passes to make something happen,” Danaher said, who finished the evening with a game-high of 19 points. “They give me more confidence. That’s the way basketball is supposed to be played.”
The Mount shot a pristine 57.1% from the floor and look onto Saturday as they host Loyola in the second of a three game homestand.
“We did a great job of playing together tonight,” Christian said. “We’re playing the most connected this early in the season than we ever had. That’s going to lead us to a really successful season.”
You can follow me on Twitter at @k_fadd and Maryland Sports Access at @MDSportsAccess.
MOUNT ST. MARY’S 81, AMERICAN 56
MOUNT ST. MARY’S (1-6)
Danaher 19, Ashe 13, Graves 10, Wray 9, Glover 8, Long 7, Robinson 5, Nwandu 4, Henderson 3, Miller 3
AMERICAN (1-5)
Maragkos 13, Paquin 13, Washington 11, Rivera 6, Reed 5, Rhea 4, D.Jones 2, C.Jones 2
Halftime – Mount St. Mary’s 35-29. 3-Point Goals – Mount St. Mary’s 7-16 (Graves 1-1, Henderson 1-1, Ashe 1-2, Glover 1-2, Long 1-2, Robinson 1-3, Miller 1-5) American 4-11 (Washington 2-4, Paquin 1-1, Rhea 1-1, C.Jones 0-1, D.Jones 0-2, Reed 0-2). Rebounds – American 29 (C.Jones 5) Mount St. Mary’s 25 (Glover 7). Assists – Mount St. Mary’s 19 (Robinson 7) American 10 (Vasic 4). Fouls – Mount St. Mary’s 18, American 13. Attendance – 1,504
