HANOVER, Indiana – Earlham College men's basketball turned in one of its best shooting performances of the season and had four players score in double digits, and posted a 70-65 win over Hanover College.

The win was the Quakers' first victory over Hanover since February 4, 2012, when Earlham posted a 57-53 road win over the Panthers.

THE BASICS

Final Score:  Earlham 70, Hanover 65
Location: Hanover, Indiana – Collier Arena
Records: Earlham 6-8, 2-5 HCAC / Hanover 11-3, 5-2 HCAC

HOW IT HAPPENED

A 16-4 run early in the first half vaulted Earlham into 20-8 lead at the 12:39 mark, following back-to-back 3-pointers from Chainey Zolman and Blake Bonin. The Quakers twice extended their lead to as much as 18 points, before settling in with a 40-26 advantage at the intermission.

After buckets from Bonin and Sakaleros to open the second half for Earlham, Hanover responded with a 10-0 run to narrow the gap. The Panthers cut the difference to five points, 53-48, on a Mark Alberts layup with 11:09 to play, and it remained a two-possession affair for the next four minutes. A layup from Kenneth Stalling Jr. eventually got Earlham back in front by seven, 59-52, and extended its lead to 11 points as the clock showed 4:30 to play.

A 6-0 run from Hanover brought the Panthers back to within five of the Quakers, and the margin was further reduced to three, 68-65, with two seconds showing on the clock after a Logan Ratts free throw. Stalling connected on a pair of foul shots in the waning seconds to preserve the conference road victory.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

Four Earlham players finished in double figures, led by Jamel Barnes Jr. who finished with 19 points on a 6-of-11 effort from the floor with three 3-pointers, and dished out six assists to aid the Earlham cause.

Chainey Zolman tallied 15 points with a team-high seven rebounds, while Blake Bonin and Kenneth Stalling Jr. logged 13 and 12 points respectively. Bonin also handed out six assists for the Quakers.

Kevin Williams paced Hanover with 12 points, with Logan Ratts and Connor Washburn each charting 10 points.

Earlham shot 55.6 percent (25-of-45) from the floor, its second-best shooting performance this season and best versus an HCAC opponent, and outperforming a Hanover squad that fired at a 47.3 percent clip. The Quakers connected on seven of its 17 3-point attempts, while the Panthers were held to two 3-pointers. Earlham also charted a 13-of-16 (.813) ledger at the free-throw line.

WHAT'S NEXT

Earlham men's basketball returns home on Wednesday, Jan. 22, to host Defiance College. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.