The Spring Arbor University men's basketball team opened the 2006-07 campaign with a 70-65 victory over the Rochester College Warriors. The Spring Arbor University men's basketball team opened the 2006-07 campaign with a 70-65 victory over the Rochester College Warriors.
Senior Scott Parrish (Charlevoix, MI) led four players in double figures with 18 points and 7 rebounds. Sophomores Darby Decker II (Tawas City, MI) and Josh Brandt (Flint, MI) added 14 and 11 points respectively while red-shirt freshman Justin DeKock (Demotte, IN) chipped in with 10 points off the bench.
After losing nearly 70% of their offense to graduation the Cougars relied on their defense to make a difference. Spring Arbor held Rochester to just 34% shooting from the field including a 23% clip in the first half as the Cougars build a 28-21 lead at intermission.
"I was really pleased with our intensity and focus on the defensive end. It was a very solid team effort," commented SAU head Coach Ryan Cottingham.
Freshmen Richard Blair (Pellston, MI) and Aaron List (Frankenmuth, MI) provided a big spark off the bench as well as they netted eight and six points. Blair ignited his teammates and the crowd during a stint in the second half where he came up with consecutive steals and converted in transition.
Spring Arbor has re-tooled this season after the loss of six players from last year including four seniors (Lancaster, Folkert, Jefferson, Hinkle) who provided nearly 6,000 combined points for their careers and back-to-back National Christian College National Championships. Freshmen Rob Boss (Brighton, MI) and Jared List (Frankenmuth, MI) join Decker, Brandt, and Parrish in the starting line-up. Junior transfer Brandon Matthews (Flint, MI) is available off the bench while freshman Stephone Frederick (Ypsilanti, MI) is still recovering from a broken wrist but should be cleared to play by the first of December. Junior Chad Edmonds (Ft. Wayne, IN) who was slotted to start on the wing had a season ending knee injury during the pre-season and will red-shirt.
SAU will host Madonna on Saturday, November 4th at 3:00pm
