Staff/Faculty Hoops Team Victorious in Latest Student Matchup

"The only thing colder than students' shooting is the Polar Vortex," intramural assistant Jeremy R. Bottorf quipped, recapping the team's performance during Thursday's renewed rivalry with its staff/faculty challengers. The employee squad scored the game's first eight points, and the student team – which could not overcome that cold shooting – soon found itself down by double digits. The students were not about to give up, however, calling a timeout with eight minutes left in the first half and the staff/faculty team up 27-9. Whatever was said in the huddle worked, as students began clawing their way back into the game and soon whittled the employees' lead to nine. The staff/faculty team took back the momentum, hitting some big shots to regain a double-digit lead, but Alphonso Kelly hit a trio of 3-pointers and the students once again were down by only nine points at halftime. Kelly continued to shine in the second half, finishing as the students' high scorer with 30 points and Most Valuable Player honors. Unfortunately, his teammates had issues with their shots and struggled to make baskets down the stretch. Mike Striefsky scored 15 for the students and Azeez Sulaimon added 13 points, but it wasn’t enough: the students drew no closer than seven in the second half and ultimately fell, 89-69. Joe Simon, who started off with a 3-pointer and connected on numerous other shots, ended with a team-high 28 points for the staff/faculty. Tom Little added 26 and Clayton King chipped in with 18. The rest of the winners' scoring came from Shawn McGehean, nine; Gallahad Mallery, five; and Dale Jaenke, two. Chris Lemasters added a point before leaving the game with a sore knee. The rest of the student scoring came from Hernael Noel, five; and Gio Valdez, Gabriel Nepita-Mejia and Jason Stewart, each with two. Stewart fouled out of the game and tried (unsuccessfully) to don a staff/faculty team jersey to get back onto the court. The next staff/faculty vs. student event will be a volleyball game at 5 p.m. Wednesday, April 9, in Bardo Gym.
Photos by Jeremy R. Bottorf