SHU Men's Hoops Falls in Season Opener

MOUNT VERNON, Ohio -- The Siena Heights men's basketball team opened up its season with a 79-70 loss to Ohio Christian in action at the Mount Vernon Nazarene (Ohio) Tournament on Friday.

Nick Kosovich (Shelby Township, Mich./Romeo) had 16 points and Chris Lemm (Clinton Township, Mich./Chippewa Valley) contributed 15 points and four steals for the Saints.

Also, Andre Johnson (Grand Rapids, Mich./Ottawa Hills) had 11 points and Cecil Clark (Ferndale, Mich./Ferndale) grabbed eight rebounds.

A 12-point run, led by four points from Lemm and three by Kosovich, helped SHU take its final lead of the game at 21-19 with 10:49 left in the first half. A trey by Nick Craig tied the score at 19-all before a layup by Nick Packwood (Southgate, Mich./Inter-City Baptist) put in a layup.

Ohio Christian eventually answered with an 8-1 streak of its own, which enabled the Trailblazers (1-0) to take a 38-32 lead into the locker room.

With 3:36 left in the contest, the Saints reached their smallest deficit of the second half -- 68-65 -- after Kosovich and Vince Schantz (Wyandotte, Mich./Allen Park Cabrini) made two free throws each.

Ohio Christian then scored seven consecutive points, including five by Tirrell Cumberland, to extend its lead to 10.

The Saints pulled within five with a 3 by Johnson and layup from Craig, but were unable to reach any closer.

The Trailblazers were led by Cumberland, who scored 21 points, and Mohamed Fall, who finished with 18 points and 13 rebounds.

James Nelson added 12 points and Wesley Russell chipped in with 10 points and seven assists for Ohio Christian.

Ohio Christian enjoyed a 46-33 advantage on the boards and shot 52.8 percent from the field (28 of 53). SHU was 31.9 percent from the field (23 of 72).

The Saints (0-1) will be in action again at Mount Vernon on Saturday. They will take on either hosts Mount Vernon Nazarene or Ohio-Zanesville.