Benedictine Mesa used a balanced attack, timely three-point shooting, and control of the glass to turn a tight first half into a convincing 78–58 win over Trinity Christian.
First Half
Benedictine Mesa struck first when
Khari Dunn finished a layup assisted by
Malik Payton. Trinity Christian answered quickly—
Aiden Cilladi hit a jumper and later a layup to keep pace at 4–4. The Redhawks nudged in front when
Payton buried a three, then extended the edge with a
Luis Marin layup for 9–4.
Trinity Christian rallied behind
Corey George and an
Adorno triple to tie it at 9–9. Benedictine Mesa steadied the game at the line—
Kamron Robinson sank two free throws—and the Redhawks capitalized on turnovers, with Robinson converting a layup from an
Eric Blackwell feed for a 15–11 lead.
The Redhawks maintained their cushion through the half on defense and the glass. Trinity Christian's
Silas Spaulding trimmed the margin with a deep three, but Benedictine Mesa still took a
31–24 lead into the break.
Second Half
Benedictine Mesa opened with
Howard splitting free throws (and later scoring on a putback (as the Redhawks reasserted control, 34–24. Trinity Christian threatened with a surge—
Danny Staskunas hit threes to cut it to 30–38, and
Spaulding added another triple for 37–43—but the Redhawks had the answer.
That answer was
Damian Zivak. The guard drilled threes and completed a three-point sequence with a free throw to balloon the lead to
50–39. From there, the Redhawks rolled.
Marin splashed a triple,
Blackwell followed with a jumper, and Zivak added a midrange and another three to push the advantage to
71–51.
Trinity Christian kept competing—
Harris and
Staskunas connected from deep,
Spaulding finished at the rim, and
Petkovic hit late—yet Benedictine Mesa's depth closed it out.
Blackwell scored in transition,
Dunn finished a late layup, and
Antione Anderson iced it at the stripe for the final margin.
Key Players:
Looking Ahead: The Redhawks are back on the court Wednesday, December 16
th as they take on Carroll College in the Cactus Classic.
