ALBION, Mich. – Albion College learned it could take a punch Saturday afternoon.
Staggered by shooting 21 percent from the field in the first half, the Britons recovered in the second half and overtime to take a 75-69 victory over the University of Chicago in non-league men's basketball action at Kresge Gymnasium.
"We played like we could just show up and win (in the first half)," Albion Head Coach Jody May said. "Chicago was tougher, smarter and it executed better. It's a credit to us - not everything went exactly the way we wanted, but we played hard and executed and were smart and good things can still happen. It doesn't have to be perfect and we can still win."
Seniors Dylan Bennett and ArShawn Parker came off the bench to spark Albion's rally. Trailing by 10 with 13:17 to play in regulation, the seniors combined to lead the Britons on an 8-0 run over two minutes. Neither team led by more than four the rest of the way in regulation.
Bennett and Jaylin Fordham, another senior, hit from 3-point range on consecutive possessions as Albion forged a 67-63 lead with 2 ½ minutes left in overtime and it never trailed from that point on.
Bennett's 3-point basket with 26 seconds left was the dagger – it boosted the Britons to a 71-66 lead. Bennett tacked on a pair of free throws in the closing seconds to finish with 14 points, his first time scoring in double figures this season.
Fordham chipped in with 12 points and four assists which matched his season-high. Nathaniel Collins added 10 points and six rebounds, and Parker stuffed the box score with six points, three assists and two steals.
"Dylan doesn't always play a lot of minutes, but it was a credit to him to step up when his name was called," May said. "Dylan and Jaylin made some big offensive plays and ArShawn and Nate Collins made some plays defensively. I'm going to give credit to our seniors. We only start one of them, but we play five of them. I don't think we would have won the game without our seniors."
Sophomore Jamezell Davis, Jr., Albion's leading scorer through seven games, finished a rebound shy of a double-double. His line included 12 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Now 5-2 on the year with only one loss against Division III competition, Albion will take some time off from competition to concentrate on fall semester final examinations. Albion's final home game of December is a 6 o'clock tip against North Central College on the 17th.
Follow Albion men's basketball on social media
Instagram: @albion.mbb
Twitter: @AlbionMBB
