Click the AUDIO buttons to hear Jakhi Richmond's player spotlight interview, and to hear post-game comments from William Kelley, Ziad Abouali, and Coach Matt Johnson.
PORT HURON---The Bay College Norse basketball team had to grind its way to a victory Friday night in a tough place to play, but were able to pull out a 66-57 win over the St. Clair Community College Skippers at the Skippers New Year's Classic in Port Huron. The result gave the Norse a 10-2 record with two non-conference games left before MCCAA conference play begins in another week.
Bay College jumped to a 23-12 lead as Ziad Abouali scored twice, Savion Johnson added a pair of hoops in the paint, and the Norse got triples from Emerson Droubie, William Kelley, and Trevor Nolan. But the Skippers closed to within 26-23 as Riley Hunt went on a personal 8-0 run before the Norse regrouped and took a 32-23 lead into the locker room with baskets by Johnson, Kelley, and Taveon Vann.
The lead grew to 35-23 when Droubie knocked down a triple in the first minute of the second half, but the Skippers (8-6) would not go away. The Norse shut down Hunt, who scored 13 points in the first half, but other guys stepped up for SC4.
Kevin Tiggs scored nine second half points and De'Andre Terrell, who did not score in the first half, scored eight during a second-half run that brought the Skippers to within 56-53 midway through the second half.
But Trey Frye III was huge down the stretch, scoring ten points, and Adam Page had a big “and-one” basket to help the Norse go ahead 60-55. Bay salted the game away at the free throw line, which, incidentally was a place the team did not see very often. The Norse did not shoot a single free throw until there were 8:57 left in the game.
Kelley and Droubie led the Norse with 13 points each, and Frye contributed 12. Hunt had 16 and Chris McLavish added 13 for the Skippers.
Bay College will face Macomb Community College at 1:00 on Saturday. The Monarchs lost to Kalamazoo Valley, 76-68, on Friday. Saturday's game will tip at 1:00 and it will be broadcast live on Maverick 106.3 FM.
---VIDEOS AND PHOTOS WILL BE ADDED SUNDAY---
