With the win the Britons improved to 20-6. They will face Calvin College Friday, Feb. 27 in a 6 p.m. semifinal game at the Holland Civic Center.
The Britons blew the Scots out of the gym by shooting the lights out, especially from behind the three-point arc. Albion shot 14 of 25 (56 percent) from three-point range. The Britons shot 53.3 percent from the field.
Sophomore Garrett Gibbons came off the bench to score all 19 of his points in the first half on 6 of 6 shooting, including five three-pointers. Behind the shooting of Gibbons—and everyone else—the Britons turned a seven-point lead with 8:30 remaining in the half into a comfortable 50-24 halftime advantage by ending the period on a 23-4 spurt.
"It was the best shooting night of the year, but we also defended very well," said Albion head coach Mike Turner. "It wasn't just the first half. Both halves we shot well, defended well, and rebounded well."
The Britons got a huge contribution from the bench, which scored 57 points. Senior guard Sean Davis scored 14 points on 5 of 6 shooting, including a perfect 4 of 4 from behind the arc, senior Joe Finland put in six and grabbed four rebounds and sophomore Rick Palmer and first-year guard Zachary Silas each scored five.
"I'm very pleased with the guys on the bench and what they're able to do," said Turner.
As for the starters, junior guard Michael Thomas scored 14 points and sophomore forward Brandon Crawford added 11.
Senior point guard Marcus Gill dished out eight of the 25 assists Albion recorded on 32 made field goals. With precision passing, which resulted in many easy layups, the Britons turned the ball over just nine times. Gill had just one turnover for a 8:1 assist-to-turnover ratio.
Albion converted 18 Alma turnovers into 24 points and also outrebounded the Scots 38-23.
Every Briton got in the game and all but one player scored.
Anthony Jones led the Scots with 17 points and eight rebounds. Brian Hall added nine points.
ALMA COLLEGE (3-23) Anthony Jones 6-10 5-5 17; Brian Hall 3-4 3-3 9; Eric Jones 3-5 0-0 6; Domonick Allen 2-8 1-5 5; Issac Smith 2-5 0-2 4; Ricky Clarkson 1-3 0-0 3; Mike Thompson 1-4 0-0 3; Greg Nelson 1-4 0-0 2; Jamie Diener 1-1 0-0 2; Carlton Hill 0-3 0-0 0; Jamye Fazi 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 20-50 10-17 52. ALBION COLLEGE (20-6) Garrett Gibbons 6-7 2-2 19; Sean Davis 5-6 0-0 14; Michael Thomas 4-9 4-4 14; Brandon Crawford 5-6 1-3 11; Jeff Burgess 3-4 1-2 7; Joe Finland 2-5 2-2 6; Rick Palmer 1-4 2-2 5; Zachary Silas 1-3 2-2 5; Evan Way 2-2 0-0 4; Mike Bailey 1-2 0-0 3; Travis DePree 1-3 1-2 3; Marcus Gill 1-5 0-0 2; Jamison Turnbull 0-3 1-2 1; Will Braaksma 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 32-60 16-21 94. Alma College.................. 24 28 - 52 Albion College................ 50 44 - 94 3-point goals-Alma College 2-13 (Ricky Clarkson 1-2; Mike Thompson 1-3; Issac Smith 0-2; Greg Nelson 0-1; Carlton Hill 0-2; Jamye Fazi 0-1; Anthony Jones 0-2), Albion College 14-25 (Garrett Gibbons 5-6; Sean Davis 4-4; Michael Thomas 2-5; Zachary Silas 1-2; Mike Bailey 1-2; Rick Palmer 1-3; Marcus Gill 0-3). Fouled out--Alma College-None, Albion College-None. Rebounds-Alma College 23 (Anthony Jones 8), Albion College 38 (Brandon Crawford 6; Travis DePree 6). Assists-Alma College 17 (Anthony Jones 4; Carlton Hill 4), Albion College 25 (Marcus Gill 8). Total fouls-Alma College 11, Albion College 18. A-211