The #10 Thomas More University men’s basketball team fell to Cumberland (Tenn.) on Thursday evening (January 12), 78-75, despite a strong effort by the Saints. The team’s overall record falls to 14-3 and 9-3 in conference play.
Sophomore Wyatt Vieth kicked off the scoring for the Saints with a layup to make it a 2-0 game with 19:45 on the clock. Redshirt junior Reid Jolly made a jump shot to put the Saints up 10-7 with 14:44 to play in the first half. Sophomore transfer Kyle Ross hit a jump shot with 6:04 to play to put the Saints within six (24-30). Reid Jolly made a layup and one for the Saints final basket of the first half with 41 seconds to make it a 34-41 game. The Phoenix would have a 34-43 lead going into the locker room at the half. Reid Jolly led the Saints with 15 points and one assist and tallied one rebound in the first half. Wyatt Vieth followed with seven points and one rebound. Kyle Ross led the team defensively with three rebounds and had six points.
Reid Jolly started things off for the Saints in the second half, draining a 3-point shot with 18:25 on clock to make it a 37-47 game. Noah Pack knocked in a 3-point basket with 12:50 to play to put the Saints within six (49-56). With 5:55 to play, Wyatt Vieth drove to the rim for a layup to make it a 60-64 game. Noah Pack hit a 3-point shot with 35 seconds left to put the Saints down by five. Jacob Jones would make a layup for the Saints final basket of the game with one second to play (75-78) to put the team just short of the Phoenix. Jacob Jones led the second half with 12 points and had two rebounds and one assist. Noah Pack recorded five rebounds to lead the team and had nine points and two assists. Wyatt Vieth had five rebounds and three assists to lead the Saints in the second half and had eight points. Reid Jolly had nine points, two rebounds, and two assists.
Reid Jolly led the team with 24 points and three assists and had three rebounds. Jacob Jones recorded 16 points, four rebounds, and two assists. Wyatt Vieth had three assists to lead the team and had 15 points and six rebounds. Noah Pack tallied seven rebounds and three assists to lead the team and had 11 points. Kyle Ross had nine points and three rebounds. The Saints were 50.9% (29-57) from the field, 42.9% (9-21) from the 3-point line, and 72.7% (8-11) from the free throw line.
The Saints will return to action in Pulaski, Tenn. against UT Southern on Saturday (January 14) at 4:00 pm ET. The team will look to bounce back from this loss and continue their strong performance as they strive for a successful conference play and overall season.
