The Alma College Men's Basketball team hit the road to Angola, Indiana on Wednesday night to take on host Trine University in a MIAA game and were defeated by a score of 81-68. The host Thunder, after winning the contest, now have an overall record of 13-7 and 6-3 in the league, while the Scots leave town at 8-12 in 2012-13 and 3-6 in the MIAA.

"We came out really strong and were really ready to play and then we had a couple of defensive breakdowns towards the end of the half that took our momentum away," said Scots Head Coach Sam Hargraves. "Bad start to the second half and then we had to play catch up the rest of the way. We can't go zero for eight from three in the second half and win.

"Second game in a row that's happened. They have two senior first team all MIAA players that are really tough for us to cover and they both had very good games."

The Scots came out on fire from the opening tip and scored the first seven points en route to a 16-1 lead after a three-pointer by Fr. F DJ Beckman (Shelby, Mich./Shelby) at the 16:03 mark. As is usually the case, it is hard to maintain that pace over 20 minutes and the Thunder fought back to cut the lead to 26-22 at 8:24.

But, the Scots went on a 10-2 run to take a 36-24 advantage after a lay-up by Jr. G Kyle Aho (Gwinn, Mich./Gwinn) at the 4:02 mark. However, Trine kept pushing and finished the frame on a 15-4 run that narrowed the gap to 40-39 as the two teams headed into halftime.

The Thunder built on their momentum at the start of the second half and after a 10-1 run, led by a score of 49-41 with 15:43 left in the game. Trine, feeling confident, eventually took their biggest lead of the contest at 18 points after a lay-up gave them a 67-49 advantage at the 9:01 mark.

Alma kept battling but couldn't really make a dent in the deficit, cutting it to 10 at 73-63 after a jumper by Sr. G Chris Williamson (Fowlerville, Mich./Fowlerville) with 2:58 remaining. The Scots cut it to nine when a Beckman jumper made the score 77-68 with 46 seconds left, but the Thunder held their ground and walked off with the 81-68 win.

Jr. F Isiah Law (Grand Haven, Mich./Grand Haven) led Alma with 15 points and five rebounds, while Aho had 12 points and Beckman also chipped in 12 points along with three steals. Jr. F Jake Murawske (Harbor Beach, Mich./Harbor Beach) contributed five rebounds, while Williamson and Jr. G Brandon Krause (Sanford, Mich./Meridian) each had three assists.

After nine three-pointers in the first half, the Thunder held the Scots to none in the second frame. After the 16-1 start, Trine outscored Alma by a margin of 80-52 in the final 86 minutes.

The Scots continue the season on Saturday afternoon when they play at Olivet College, beginning at 3:00 p.m.