The AU men’s basketball team played superb all-around in its 69-54 victory at The College of Holy Cross on Jan. 5. The win marked the Eagles’ first 2-0 start to Patriot League play in program history.
Marking their third straight road victory, AU (6-7, 2-0 PL) spread the ball against Holy Cross (6-8, 0-2 PL) as each of AU’s five starters totaled double-digit scoring.
“We wanted to be aggressive against their press, but still pick and choose the right moments to bring it out and run our half-court offense,” head coach Mike Brennan told AUEagles.com. “Our decision making helped us be successful today.”
The Eagles came out strong as they quickly jumped to 17-6, led in scoring by junior guard John Schoof who finished the game with 12 total points going 5-7 from the field.
The crusaders surged back however, bringing the game within six as the Eagles headed into halftime ahead 34-28.
AU was determined to contain Holy Cross’ senior center Dave Dudzinski, who although finished with 15 points went just 4-11 on field goals, though connecting on all six of his free throws.
“I thought the guys defended well,” Brennan said. “Dudzinski is a great player and we did a good job on him.”
The Eagles played an all-around tough, interior defense, forcing the Crusaders to have to beat them through difficult outside of the paint shots. Holy Cross finished with a 30 percent field goal shooting percentage along with giving up 12 turnovers to the Eagles.
The key to this victory for the Eagles was hustle and consistency by their starters who each played 25 minutes or more. This effort was led by senior point guard Darius Gardner who played the whole game and totaled 10 points, three steals, five assists, three rebounds and only one turnover.
AU will return to Bender Arena after more than a month away for their next matchup against new conference opponent Loyola University, Maryland, on Jan. 8.
