LANSING, Mich. – The Madonna University men's basketball team got a double-double from Jonathan Swift and saw newcomer Dwight Burton scores a team-high 16 points as the Crusaders started the year on the right foot with a 76-70 win over Great Lake Christian College at the Doty Center on Saturday afternoon. The win moves Madonna to 1-0 while GLCC falls to 0-2.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The home team kept the game close early, but an 11-2 run by the Crusaders turned a 7-6 lead into a 10-point advantage with 12:05 to play in the first half. A Thomas Simmons dunk at the 4:04 mark gave MU their largest lead of the game at 18 points, 33-15. A run by Great Lakes cut the lead to 11, but Burton, Joshua Reynolds and Malik Eichler eached netted points in the final minute of the half for a 42-29 lead at the break.

• A spurt by the Lansing program cut the lead to seven, 52-45, but then neither team scored for nearly four minutes. A Mark Mettie free throw ended the drought and a Swift jumper pushed the lead back to 10, 55-45. Great Lakes cut the lead back to six with 1:06 to play, but Reynolds and Swift converted four consecutive free throws to seal the win.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Madonna finished the day 26-of-62 (43.5%) from the floor and 6-of-17 (35.3%) from beyond the arc. The Blue and Gold also converted 16-of-29 (55.2%) free throws, grabbed 46 rebounds and scored 17 points off the bench.

• The defense limited GLCC to 29.1 percent (23-of-79) from the field, 25.7 percent (9-of-35) from long range and 83.3 percent (15-of-18) from the charity stripe and forced 17 turnovers.

• Burton led the team with 16 points and grabbed six boards with four assists and two steals

• Swift grabbed 11 rebounds to go with 11 points, three assists and four steals

• Reynolds and Mettie each added 12 points for MU

NOEL'S NOTIONS

• "This was a great first step in the direction we want to go this year. We played with great effort and energy, really moved the ball and were unselfish. We worked together to solve the challenges Great Lakes presented with their press, pressure and ability to play five guys who can play on the perimeter, were aggressive and shot the ball well. We learned some of our strengths and where we can improve and we look forward to working on those as we prepare for the Bernie Holowicki Classic next weekend."

UP NEXT

• The Crusaders return to action on Friday, Nov. 2 when they host East-West University in the second game of the Bernie Holowicki Classic at 7:30 p.m. The Classic concludes on Saturday, Nov. 3 at 5 p.m. against No. 2 IU-East.

• Live video and stats will be provided via the Madonna Athletics Network at www.mucrusaders.com/live.

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