ROCHESTER HILLS, Mich. – The Spring Arbor University men's basketball team fell to Cleary 84-78 on Saturday afternoon at Garth Pleasant Arena on the second day of the Chick-fil-A of Auburn Hills Homecoming Classic, hosted by Rochester Christian University.
The Cougars moved to 2-3 on the young season while Cleary improved to 4-0.
Spring Arbor trailed 42-33 at halftime but cut the deficit to five on a
Kolt Nelson dunk and a
David Cundiff layup to open the second half. Cleary answered with a 14-1 run to take a 56-38 lead.
Kam Radeker scored eight points in a little more than two minutes to help Spring Arbor cut the margin to 10. The Cougars got within nine on a
Brandon Trilli layup with 1:37 remaining, but Cleary scored the next four points to hold off the late push.
Connor Bush led Spring Arbor with 15 points. Radeker scored a career-high 11 points and made three 3-pointers off the bench. Trilli finished with 10 points, a team-high nine rebounds and an SAU career-high six assists.
Isaiah Green added 10 points and five rebounds, while Cundiff had seven points, five assists and three steals.
Spring Arbor recorded a season-best 21 assists and outscored Cleary 46-32 in the paint. Cleary held a 21-8 advantage in second-chance points and got a game-high 17 points from Ben Smith.
The Cougars travel to Southfield to face Lawrence Tech on Wednesday, Nov. 11, at 7 p.m.
