The St. Thomas men’s basketball team had their work cut out for them when they took on the undefeated Holland College Hurricanes this weekend.
The Tommies were also undefeated, but that came to an end Saturday as Holland College delivered a dominating 106-61 win for STU.
After the first quarter it looked like the Tommies were going to stick with the Hurricanes, as the score was 23-22 after 10 minutes of play. From there the Hurricanes took control and didn’t look back, increasing their lead to 15 by half.
Third year guard Dylan Gallant thinks the Tommies were able to learn from the tough road game.
“That gives us a little bit of an idea of what the playoff atmosphere will be like,” said Gallant. “It also showed a lot of character of us to keep fighting the whole 40 minutes.”
The Hurricanes gym was hectic, while the fans chirped Tommies star Will Barber. Barber finished with his lowest total in the Tommies first three games, with 12 points. Foul trouble cut into his opportunities.
“They had a lot of fans there and it was loud, but we know to expect that from their crowd and we tried not to let the crowd make a difference,” said Gallant.
Ben Cripps led the Tommies with 13 points, while Chase Bowden of the Hurricanes scored a game high 25 points.
The loss puts the Tommies’ record to 2-1. On Sunday, the Tommies will be back on the court to take on the University of King’s College Blue Devils, who STU beat 85-79 in the first game of the season.
“We’re excited to get at it again,” said Gallant. “After a game like today it’s obvious in the locker room how hungry we are for growth.”
