Lyndonville, VT - North Atlantic conference leading Husson University used a 21-0 run over a 6:18 stretch in the first half of Saturday's men's basketball game to take control and go on to defeat Lyndon State College, 99-58.  The Eagles improve to 12-4 overall and 9-1 in conference, while the Hornets fall to 2-13 and 2-7 in the NAC.

Lyndon took the early lead in Saturday's contest when Darren Williams Jr. (Wiesbaden, Germany) converted on the game's opening possession. Following a Justin Martin (Winslow, ME) layup, Robbie Rouelle (St. Johnsbury, VT) knocked down a three-pointer to give the Hornets a 5-2 advantage.  Four straight points from Husson's Justin Thompson (East Millinocket, ME) gave the Eagles the lead.  Following a Cole Thomas (Orlando, FL) layup, the Hornets' Zach Knowlton (Franconia, NH) connected from three-point range to knot things at 8-8, three minutes into the contest.

At that point Husson took over.  Raheem Anderson (Miramar, FL) connected from three-point range off of an offensive rebound and kickout form Martin to ignite the run.  Meanwhile, the Hornets came up empty on 15 straight possessions, as a combination of strong Eagle defense and sloppy Lyndon offense contributed to the run.  Mitch Worcester's (Washburn, ME) three-pointer capped the 21-point outburst, and the Eagles found themselves in front, 29-8, with just under 12 minutes to go in the half.

Lyndon was able to chip away somewhat, and when Kendrick Mills (Rutland, VT) knocked down a three-pointer, the Hornets had trimmed the deficit to 33-17 with 6:17 to go in the half.  Anderson put an end to the rally, making three of four free throws, and Husson built their advantage to 50-21 at the halftime break.  Anderson scored 14 points in the opening half to pace the Eagles. Meanwhile, the Hornets only converted 8 of 30 field goal attempts (26.7%) and contributed to their  struggles by committing 16 turnovers.

Lyndon briefly looked like they might get back in the contest at the start of the second half, as a Knowlton three followed by six straight points from CJ Jimmy (Modesto, CA) helped the Hornets narrow the deficit to 52-30, 1:25 into the half. Husson snuffed out any potential Lyndon rally by scoring the next six points on a Thompson layup, two Thomas free throws, and an Anderson breakaway dunk off of a Martin steal. Husson then continued to pull away for the rest of the half, cruising to the 41-point victory.

Anderson topped four double figure scorers for Husson, finishing with 20 points. DJ Bussey (Peoria, AZ) added 18, while Thomas and Thompson chipped in with 12 each. Ricky Shuford (Prattville, AL) was Lyndon's only double figure scorer with 10 points, while Knowlton, Rouelle, and Mills each ended with nine points.

For the game, Husson shot 50.7% from the floor (36 of 71) and 32.1% from the arc (32.1%), while Lyndon only shot 31.3% (21 of 67) from the floor and 30% (9 of 30) from three.  The Eagles also enjoyed the advantage at the free throw line, converting 18 of 24 attempts, compared to 7 of 10 for the Hornets.  Husson outrebounded Lyndon, 46-41, and forced the Hornets into 27 turnovers while only committing 14 of their own.

The Eagles host in-state rival Colby College on Tuesday, January 23rd with a tip schedule for 7:00 pm.