Washington Evening Journal
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Tiger men can’t cool off Eureka
Andy Krutsinger
Mar. 8, 2021 12:00 am
MT. PLEASANT - The Iowa Wesleyan men's' basketball team was tasked with slowing down a tough Eureka squad on Saturday, and that task proved too much, mostly due to a red-hot start for the Red Devils.
Eureka seemingly couldn't miss in the openin gminutes, and the Tigers never saw a lead in a 51-38 loss.
'It really started from the first half,” said Iowa Wesleyan head coach Alex Huisman. 'We dug ourselves a hole, and we were playing catch up basically the whole game.”
The Tigers especially had trouble with Eureka guard Ian Milsteadt, who scored 20 points in the first quarter to lead the Red Devils to a 51-38 lead at the break.
Iowa Wesleyan's best run came in the first four minutes of the second half. The Tigers cut the Red Devils lead to six, at 53-47, putting the pressure on a Eureka team who threatened to run away with it in the first 20 minutes.
The Tigers had a handful chances to cut the lead back to one possession, but they couldn't buy a basket brom long range. IW shot just 1-for-10 from 3-point land in the second half and Eureka eventually was able to push the lead back to double digits.
The Tigers were led by Marvin Saintolien, who scored 18 points on the night and also paced his squad with three steals. Jarryd Fernandes collected another double-double, going for 16 points and 11 rebounds. Kaleb Cresswell had 14 points and seven assists. Jared Arellano tacked on 11 points. Alex Dentlinger had nine, and David Seber finished with four.
The Red Devils were led by Milsteadt, who stuffed the stat sheet with 30 points, 14 rebounds and three blocked shots.
'He's going to get his shots, and he's going to score points,” said Huisman. 'Our job is to make it as difficult as we can, and we came out not having the right energy.”
The Tigers are now 2-5 overall and 1-2 in the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. They'll travel to Webster (1-2, 1-1) on Tuesday night.
Iowa Wesleyan's Jarryd Fernandes takes on two Eureka College defenders in Saturday's SLIAC home matchup. The Tigers fell to the Red Devils 84-72. (Andy Krutsinger/The Union)
Iowa Wesleyan's Jared Arellano flies through the air during Saturday evening's SLIAC loss to Eureka College. (Andy Krutsinger/The Union)