Taylor hits 13 shots in the win
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Ryan Taylor shattered his career scoring mark, knocking down 13 shots on his way to 38 points as the University of Evansville men’s basketball team defeated Norfolk State, 85-66, on Wednesday night at the Ford Center.
“It is a good win, we have a lot of respect for Norfolk State. They are a tough team to prepare for with how many different things they do,” UE head coach Marty Simmons said. “I was proud of our guys for getting into our schemes offensively. Overall, I thought our guys did some good things.”
Taylor was 13-of-21 from the floor and connected on six triples to lead the Purple Aces (7-4). He was just one point off of Colt Ryan’s Ford Center scoring record of 39. Ryan set that mark on January 18, 2012 against Bradley. Jaylon Brown also had a nice effort for UE, registering 18 points while going a perfect 6-6 from the line. Sergej Vucetic was 2-2 from the field and 4-4 from the charity stripe on his way to eight points as the Aces moved to a perfect 7-0 at home this season.
“My teammates found me early on and almost all of my shots were because of being set up on a screen,” Taylor said. “Our point guards did a great job of finding me. Give them the credit, they created those shots.”
A 25-point outing by Zaynah Robinson led the Spartans (2-9). He knocked down eight field goals, six from outside.
Seven of the first eight shots on the night found the bottom of the net as the Aces jumped out to a 21-11 lead in the opening six minutes of play. Ryan Taylor, who notched 20 points in the first half, hit his first five shots while Jaylon Brown hit two in the opening stanza.
A 3-pointer by Stavian Allen at the midway point of the half saw the Spartans get within six at 24-18, but the Aces were able to pull away over the final minutes. Evansville completed the half on a 20-9 run to lead by a 44-27 margin at the half. The Aces out shot NSU, 57.1%-37.9% but there was an even greater disparity in the rebounds with UE holding a 23-11 edge.
Taylor was at it again in the second half. In the opening moments, his fourth trey of the game saw him pass his career mark in scoring as he notched his 24th point, eclipsing his previous best of 22, set earlier this year against Middle Tennessee State. His efforts helped the Aces take a 19-point lead at 64-45, but the Spartans roared back.
They got within 11 at 65-54 with 8 minutes remaining and kept the pressure on. A Zaynah Robinson triple cut the gap to just nine at 73-64 with just over four minutes left on the clock, but the Aces were able to regroup to finish off the 85-66 triumph.
For the game, the Aces shot 54.2% while the Spartans finished the night at 41.5%. Evansville had the final rebounding edge at 38-24. Christian Benzon set his career mark with a game-high 9 caroms. Solomon Hainna played a season-high 18 minutes. He finished with a solid six points and four rebounds in the effort.
It is back to the road for UE as they head south to face Austin Peay. Game time is 7 p.m. On Saturday.
