The Dragons' offense came to life on Tuesday night, scoring a season high 88 points as Tiffin was able to hold off the Kentucky State Thorobreds by three points to move back to the .500 mark overall.
The Dragons stepped on the accelerator right from the opening tip, scoring the first 11 points of the game to force a Thorobreds' timeout. Tiffin continued to lead as the half rolled on, but it became less comfortable as Kentucky State slowly chipped away and eventually tied the score 34-34 with 04:13 left. The Dragons fought their way out of the corner using an 9-0 run to lead 43-34 with 01:53 remaining before halftime. The Thorobreds trotted closer as halftime drew near, and with a pair of free throws trailed 43-41 at the break.
The Dragons were as hot as a firecracker in the 1st half, hitting 17 of 32 shots, including 57.1% from beyond the arc. Austin Adams led Tiffin with 11 points on 5 of 8 shooting. Adams added five boards and three assists. Quentin Jones was a key contributor off the bench for Tiffin, scoring seven points.
Kentucky State opened the half with an 11-6 run to hold a 52-49 lead over Tiffin. The Dragons eventually tied the score and traded buckets with the Thorobreds for the vast majority of the first 10 minutes of action. With the two sides even at 70-70 Tiffin moved to the inside and used an 11-6 run to hold an 81-76 lead with 02:47 remaining. The Thorobreds went stride for stride with Tiffin down the stretch, pulling to within a point at 83-82 with 59 seconds remaining. Tiffin never blinked as they came to the line, hitting 5 of 6 free throw attempts down the stretch to seal an 88-85 victory.
The Dragons had their best shooting game of the year, knocking down 57.6% of their field goals and 60% of their three point attempts. In the 2nd half Tiffin was unstoppable, connecting on 63% of their field goal attempts and 10 of 14 free throw attempts. Tiffin held an advantage in rebounding 35-28, points off turnovers 18-12, 2nd chance points 18-14, and bench points 20-9.
Individually, Austin Adams had his best evening of the year, scoring 29 points on 65% shooting and snagged 11 boards for his 2nd double-double of the season. Alex Brown poured in 20 points for Tiffin, while grabbing three boards and dishing out three assists. Shane Waldon was the final player in double figures, scoring 10 points and collecting six rebounds. Tiffin's bench contributed 20 points, including a 7 for 8 performance from the free throw stripe.
The Dragons are now 2-2 overall and will be right back on the hardwood tomorrow afternoon, taking on the University of Indianapolis at 1:00 pm.