BYoung Feb 3rd
Junior Brendan Young (11) breaks his own record for rebounds in a game (21) and moves to fourth all-time in career rebounds (697).
72
Michigan-Dearborn MICHIGAN 3-19, 1-15
103
Winner Madonna MADONNA 18-4, 14-2
Michigan-Dearborn MICHIGAN
3-19, 1-15
72
Final
103
Madonna MADONNA
18-4, 14-2
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Michigan-Dearborn MICHIGAN 35 37 72
Madonna MADONNA 50 53 103

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | Kellen Burke

Young shatters own record in second-straight blowout victory

LIVONIA, Mich. - Returning home after their three-game road stretch, the #RV Madonna Crusaders (17-4, 13-2) would follow up their 30-point blowout win over UNOH with a second-straight triple-digit performance against another WHAC opponent, the UM-Dearborn Wolverines (3-18, 1-14). Headlining the incredible victory for the Crusaders was junior forward Brendan Young who broke his own record from last season for most rebounds in a single-game all-time (20) and nearly recorded Madonna's first-ever triple-double with 12 points, 21 rebounds, and six assists. Young now sits at first, second and fourth in school history for most rebounds in a single-game, once again etching his name into the record books and cementing his legacy as an all-time great Crusader. His heroic performance helped lead the Crusaders past the Wolverines in a 103-72 victory.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

In an opening that no one saw coming, the Wolverines managed to hang with the Crusaders coming out of the gate. Crusader guard Isaac Anderson would score the game's opening shot, but the Wolverines would take a quick lead to follow. Young scored his first points of the night with a three-pointer from the wing to take it right back. From there, graduate student Devin Dunn would let a three of his own fly, and forward Sho-Ron Graham would slam down a dunk to take a five-point lead five minutes into the contest.

However, the script would flip in the next five minutes as the Wolverines would steal a six-point lead after the first ten minutes of play, up 22-16 on the Crusaders early. The Crusaders would not stay down for long, as a barrage of Crusader three-pointers would bring them right back. Ryan Nunn dropped the first one to cut the lead to three, before Madonna used their first time out of the half. After taking a minute to regroup, Dunn would pull up from the logo on the first possession to follow and drain the game-tying shot with ease. Dunn snagged a steal on the Wolverine inbound to follow and passed it to Nunn who drained another three to give the Crusaders back the lead at 25-22 with just under nine minutes to play in the first half.

Once they regained the lead, there was no looking back for the Crusaders as they began to run away with the game in the closing minutes of the half. They continued to fire away from behind the arc as the lead quickly grew to double-digits. With just over two minutes remaining, center Matthew MacLellan got all net on a three-pointer from the top of the three to extend their lead to 12. While the Wolverines would counter with a three of their own, Ethan Emerzian would counter with another deep three for the Crusaders to give it right back. With the final shot of the half, Dunn would drain his third three to give the Crusaders a 15-point lead at the buzzer, up 50-35 with a full twenty-minutes still left to play.

Already with a stat line of 8-12-5 at the half, the Crusaders knew that Young was going to have a shot at breaking his own school record which he set last season, fittingly against the Wolverines the last time these two teams faced off at ACCU Arena. The record of 19 rebounds had stood for six years before Young stole it away with a 20-rebound performance on November 22nd, 2022. Four days later on November 26th, he would nearly get there again with a 17-rebound game against No. 4 ranked College of Idaho, which also put him at third all-time. Now, history was set to repeat itself at ACCU Arena against the Wolverines once again. 

With six minutes left to play, Young snagged rebound number 21 on the night, passing himself and now sitting at first, second, and fourth all-time for rebounds in a single game. A record that seemed so untouchable just over a year ago has now been shattered twice by Young, who still holds another year of eligibility for the Crusaders after this season. Young also moved to fourth all-time in career rebounds with 697 before the end of his third season.



Following this, Young and the rest of the starters would take a seat as the Crusaders' bench brought home the win in the final six minutes of play. The Crusaders would put up back-to-back triple-digit and 30-point victories as they finished off the Wolverines 103-72.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
  • Young broke his own school-record for most rebounds in a single game (20) with a 21-board performance. He nearly recorded the school's first-ever triple-double with 12 points, 21 rebounds, and six assists.
  • Anderson led the Crusaders in scoring once again with 21 points.
  • Dunn was nearly lights-out from behind the arc with a 16-point performance that included four three-pointers on seven attempts.
  • MacLellan also found double-digits with 12 points, six rebounds, and one block.
UP NEXT: 

The Crusaders will hit the road once again to face the Rochester University Warriors (15-7, 10-6) at their home stadium with hopes to keep their win-streak alive as the WHAC Tournament inches closer. Tip-off is set for 7:30 pm this upcoming Wednesday, February 7th at Garth Pleasant Arena.
 
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