RICHMOND – The Earlham College men's basketball team fell to the Lions of Mount St. Joseph University in Druley Performance Gym 70-67 on Saturday afternoon. The loss has heavy implications for the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference standings as the Quakers are now in ninth place in the conference, one spot out of a postseason berth. 

The Quakers fell to 9-11 (5-8 HCAC) while the Lions improved to 10-12 (6-9 HCAC).

Jaden Terry led all scorers with 30 points on the afternoon, the junior also grabbed 10 rebounds and three steals. Kolden Vanlandingham also reached double-digit points with 14. 

Earlham was in a hole early as the Lions took a 9-2 lead after four minutes of competition. A 3-pointer from Terry helped lift the Quakers up and at the 14:10 mark, he tied the game at 11 with a layup. 

With the score tied at 18 midway through the first half, Earlham scored a 6-0 run that spanned 90 seconds of play time. MSJ responded with a 12-2 run to retake the lead. Vanlandingham hit a 3-pointer to make the score 30-29 in favor of the Lions, but the visitors finished the half with points on three consecutive possessions. 

The Lions continued into the second half with a 10-3 run in the opening four minutes. 

Trailing 54-41 with 12 minutes remaining, the Quakers scored a 19-2 run over eight minutes of play time. Earlham retook the lead off of a Terry 3-pointer with 4:51 on the clock. 

The Lions scored a 7-0 run to take a 66-62 lead with 90 seconds remaining. Vanlandingham made two free throws to cut the deficit to two, then the Quakers stole a possession but missed the quick layup to tie the game. 

MSJ made two free throws which were followed by another Terry 3-pointer to give the Lions a 68-67 lead with 17 seconds left. Mount made both of its free throws on the next possession and Earlham was unable to mount an attack in the final 12 seconds. 

The Quakers will host Defiance College on Tuesday for the final home game of the 2021-22 season. Tip-off is slated for 7:30 pm in Druley Performance Gym.