The Defiance College Yellow Jacket captured the Purple & Gold Tournament crown with a 70-55 win over University of Michigan- Dearborn on Saturday night at the Weaner Center.
Matt Voland earned Tournament MVP honors by setting a 30-year tournament record with 19 rebounds, eclipsing the previous mark of 16.set by Jim Kramer of DC in 1976 and Doug Briggs of DC in 1988. The senior also scored 14 points on 5-of-10 shooting. Curt Croy led the Jackets with 15 points, while Phil Blasko added 12 points and five boards.
L.T. Willis led the Wolves with 12 points and three assists. DC’s defense forced UMD into 33% shooting from the floor, while also outrebounding their opponents 43-34. C.J. Johnson led the Jackets in assists with four, while freshman Mike Lentz added a team-high two blocks.
Blasko and Voland dominated in the paint, with the Jackets outscoring the Wolves down-low 30-18. The two big guys and Croy each scored early to give DC a quick 9-0 lead and built a 23-13 lead when Johnson drove and converted on a lay in. DC went into the half up 37-24.
In the second half, U of M made a quick run with full-court pressure, cutting the lead to four, 46-42, on two Antonio Wilcox free throws. The Wolves hung around until Johnson found Brett Hammons for a three pointer with less than three minutes left to put DC up 68-53.
Aside from Voland, Croy and Blasko were named to the All-Tournament team, while Hammons took home the Gerry Boomer Mr. Hustle Award. Joining the Jackets on the All- Tournament squad were De’Andre Pruitt of Olivet, Noel Emenhiser of Madonna, and L.T. Willis and Chris Shepard of Dearborn.
The Jackets climb to 6-1 on the year with a big home contest against Ohio Northern on Wednesday. The Polar Bears were 2-2 heading into their game at Mt. Union on Saturday night.
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