News Release

LEXINGTON, Ky. — Senior guard Marc Bain torched Thomas More for a career-high 26 points Saturday, including 24 in a sizzling first half shooting display, leading Transylvania to an 83-60 win over the Saints at the Beck Center.


The Pioneers improved to 4-1 on the season while Thomas More fell to 0-6 on the year.

Transy took control early, sprinting to a 21-point lead at 38-17 with 2:36 left in the first half. Bain made three triples in a row as the Pioneers expanded a 10-6 lead to 24-6 with a 14-0 run. He also made four straight free throws after being fouled and Thomas More was assessed a technical on the play. That made it 28-8.

Bain's previous career high was 19 points against Anderson during his sophomore year. He was seven of 11 from the field, six of nine from long range, and sis of six from the line. He also had three rebounds and a steal. All of his field goal attempts came in the first half.

After leading 40-23 at intermission, Transy scored the first eight points of the second half with Matt Finke hitting a pair of free throws, Joey Verax canning a pair of goals, and Joey Searle connecting off a Robert Pendleton assist, to make it 48-23. Only the final margin was in question after that.

The Saints got no closer than 16, 68-52, when Garry Horton scored at the 6:34 mark. Reserves played most of the rest of the way. Transy's largest margin was 29 points, 83-54, as the Saints scored the game's final six points.

Searle had 13 points and seven rebounds to go with three assists and two steals for the Pioneers while Finke had 10 points, six rebounds, three assists, and a game-high five steals.

Verax, a freshman forward who scored 24 points in his last game against Otterbein, came off the bench to get 16 against Thomas More, hitting six of 10 from the field. He also had five rebounds and two assists as Transy controlled the boards by a 40-33 margin.

E.J. Haynes fouled out after scoring 15 points and grabbing seven rebounds for the Saints. Horton had 10 points.

Transy shot 45 percent from the field (28 of 62) and nine different players scored. Transy was also 38.5 percent from three-point land (10 of 26) as the home team held a 30-9 edge over the Saints in triples. Thomas More shot 50 percent in the first half and 40 percent (22 of 55) overall, but were done in by 21 percent shooting from behind the arc.

The Pioneers continue with their pre-holiday string of home games on Tuesday, hosting Centre at 8:30 p.m. following a 6:30 matchup between the women's teams.