DUBUQUE, Iowa – The Loras College Duhawks dominated its regular-season opener, taking down the Panthers of Principia College, 103-61, inside of the AWC on Saturday night.
In his first game with the Duhawks (1-0 overall),
Jackson Molstead registered 20 points, five rebounds and two assists, all while shooting 61.5% from the floor.
Ali Sabet connected on five threes en route to scoring 19 points, while
Jared Pearson poured in 15 points in as many minutes to round out double-digit scoring Duhawks.
The Loras defense made five blocks and grabbed 11 steals, forcing 21 Principia turnovers. The Panthers shot 34.7% from the field and 15.4% from behind the arc.
The Purple and Gold outscored the visiting Panthers, 57-35, in the second half while shooting 53.6% during the final 20 minutes of play.
Loras also dominated the boards, out-rebounding Principia College, 41-25, and winning the offensive rebound battle, 14-5.
The Duhawks quickly jumped out to a 10-0 lead after sinking the first four shots of the game. Principia scored the next seven before the Duhawks went on a 11-2 run to open up an 11-point lead with 12:24 to play in the opening frame.
The Panthers trimmed the deficit to seven with 7:30 to play in the first half before the Duhawk offense caught fire, as
Declan Ciurlik,
Tyler Bass, Pearson, Molstead, and Sabet traded buckets to give Loras a 22-point lead (46-22) before the break.
The second half was more of the same for Loras, as the Duhawks' red-hot offense kept pouring it on on its way to leading by 39 with 3:44 to play. Loras' largest lead of the game came with 1:04 to play (42), a mark that would stand as the difference in the season-opener.
The Purple and Gold return to the AWC tomorrow afternoon when it takes on Concordia University-Wisconsin at 4 p.m.
