Box Score Maryville College's Myles Rasnick posted a double-double on Saturday afternoon, but a second-half flurry by Piedmont College gave the Scots their first loss of the season, 83-73.
Rasnick rounded out the USA South weekend with 26 points and 10 rebounds. The Knoxville, Tenn. native boasted three steals, two assists and five blocks, as he sank five 3-pointers on the afternoon.
After playing to a 34-all game at the half, Maryville struggled to find its rhythm in the second half. The Scots shot just 31.7 percent (13-of-41) from the floor, while going 1-of-17 from beyond the arc. Piedmont – led by seven second-half treys – posted a 51.6-percent effort (16-of-31) in the second half.
The six minutes following the break saw the Lions go on a 19-6 rally behind long-range shooting. Piedmont hit 7-of-10 from the floor, knocking down 5-of-7 3-pointers. MC missed each of its six long-range attempts, while going 3-of-12 from the floor.
The Lions jumped out to an early lead, extending it to a seven-point margin at the 7:06 mark with a Justin Quick jumper. Rasnick scored five unanswered, while JR Sanders bucketed a trey to make it a one-point game.
The Scots took the lead at 4:52 on a Rasnick pull-up jumper, before the two squads traded buckets for a 34-34 halftime score. MC posted seven second-chance points off five offensive boards in the first half.
Piedmont's second-half run gave them a 13-point advantage at the 14-minute mark. The Scots chipped away at that lead, however, cutting it to five with 9:43 remaining.
A Jordan Foote second-chance jumper extended the Lions' lead back to eight, 56-64, before MC cut it to four just 1:15 later on buckets from Rasnick and Felix Uadiale.
Orry Clements-Owens and Quick knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers with 3:33 left, as Piedmont extended its lead back to 10. Free throws mounted in the final minutes, as the Scots fell, 83-73.
Maryville (1-1, 1-1 USA South) saw Uadiale follow Rasnick's 26-point outing with 16 points of his own. The sophomore added six rebounds and a pair of blocks, while Sanders added a dozen points. He finished with three rebounds, two assists and two steals.
Kordell Kah added nine points and eight rebounds off the bench, while Kevin Chong had four points, five boards, three assists and a steal to his credit. Nicholas Clifton had two points, nine rebounds, three assists and two steals, while Jekobe Coleman and Daryl Rice added two points each off the bench.
MC shot 32.9 percent (27-of-82) from the floor, while going just 7-of-35 (20 percent) from long range. The Scots had 12-of-14 free throws, as they out-rebounded the Lions, 48-43.
Piedmont (4-4, 1-1 USA South) shot 29-of-58 (50 percent), while bucketing 10 treys at a 52.6-percent clip.
All five of the Lions starters scored in double figures, as Ryan Jolly led the way with 21 points. Foote had a double-double with 11 points and 13 rebounds, while Quick added 19 points. Andrew Stimpson had 13 points with four 3-pointers, while Clements-Owens added 14 points, five rebounds and five assists.
Maryville will have six days off before traveling to Brevard College in Brevard, N.C. MC plays the Tornados on Friday, Jan. 22 at 8:00 p.m., before facing them again on Saturday, Jan. 23 with a 4:00 p.m. tip.
