VINCENNES, Ind. – The No. 8-ranked Vincennes University Trailblazers headed into Saturday night’s game with Wabash Valley College locked in a three-way tie for the top spot in the Region 24 standings with the Warriors and Olney Central College.
VU looked to answer the call and close out the week strong in this first place matchup Saturday night in the Physical Education Complex and were able to ride a 48-22 rebounding advantage to an 80-62 victory over Wabash Valley.
The Trailblazers came out of the gates strong and ended up nearly going wire-to-wire over the Warriors, using an early 11-2 scoring run to take a quick 11-4 lead before growing the lead to double digits at 19-8.
VU would later use a 12-0 scoring run to pick up their largest lead of the first half at 37-22 before the Warriors closed out the opening period on a 9-2 scoring run.
The Trailblazers headed into the locker room break still holding on to a 39-31 advantage over Wabash Valley.
Coming out of the locker room the Trailblazers again looked to set the tone early in the second half, scoring the first six points of the final 20 minute period to lead 45-31.
The two teams would trade baskets throughout most of the second half, with VU slowly increasing their lead, eventually gaining the largest lead of the night at 75-52.
Wabash Valley fought late but were unable to put together a big scoring run as the Blazers came away with the 80-62 victory over the Warriors.
“When we move the ball and our post players post and seal and we’re running our actions right, we are hard to deal with,†VU Hall of Fame Head Coach Todd Franklin said. “In a day in age when everyone says it’s all about running around and firing threes, they have a hard time guarding us. And when we are sharp enough, they have a really hard time guarding us. We were presenting that early in the game and throughout the game and it was very difficult for them to handle.â€
