Box Score The Maryville College men's basketball team snapped a two-game losing streak with a key USA South home victory over Covenant College by the score of 77-65 on Saturday evening in MC's Boydson Baird Gymnasium.
Maryville's Oscar Butler finished just a pair of assists shy of a triple-double effort. Butler, a senior from Murfreesboro, pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds while dishing out eight assists. The talented wing finished with 13 points.
MC needed Butler's complete game after the visiting Georgian Scots jumped out to a 10-2 advantage in the first four minutes of the game. A Calvin Songster three-pointer pulled Maryville to within a basket (30-29) but Covenant went on an 8-2 run with three minutes remaining in the half. A Covenant trey and layup before the intermission gave them a 43-40 lead.
Maryville started strong in the second period with a Butler layup and a Songster trey to earn their first lead of the game (45-43). MC's defense held Covenant to a 38% shooting effort from the floor including a 1-for-7 effort from beyond the arc to pull away. The hometown Scots connected on 49% of their own shots and out rebounded the visitors 24-11 in the final period. Songster and Butler closed the door with 11 points and nine points respectively in the final period to preserve the victory.
Covenant (4-13, 3-5 USA South) was led by Will Portlock's 14 points. T.J. Cox dished out a team-high five assists while finishing with a dozen points.
Maryville (8-8, 3-2 USA South) had four players post double-digit scoring efforts during the win. Spencer Shoffner threw down four treys for a game-high 18 points while also recording a game-high six steals. Jaumonee Byrd was strong in the paint with 15 points on 7-of-11 shooting. Calvin Songster added four three-pointers for 14 points while Butler's near triple-double netted 13 points. Antonio Jackson dished out seven assists from the point guard position while also finishing with three steals.
Maryville will now prepare for a five-game road trip beginning with a USA South challenge on Monday, January 26th in Fayetteville, North Carolina. MC looks to take on the Monarchs of Methodist University.
