BROOKLYN – Tyler Shular scored seven of his game-high 39 points during a 15-0 run at the start of the second half, as the Fisher College Falcons exploded for 65 second-half points, and downed Pratt men's basketball, 105-49, in a non-conference matchup at the Pratt ARC on Tuesday evening.
After scoring 12 points on only 4-for-15 shooting in the first half, including 2-for-11 from behind the arc, Shular scorched the Cannoneers defense, shooting 11-for-15 in the second half, including 4-for-5 from behind the arc. Shular scored 27 in the second stanza, one of two players for Fisher (15-11) to reach double-figures in the second half.
"In the first half, we were able to get out to their shooters, forcing them into difficult shots," said head coach Johnny Lee. "[The] second half was a completely different story. Too many uncontested threes and that poor defensive effort led to careless possessions on offense where we turned it over more than our average."
Pratt dropped its seventh straight game, falling to 4-10 on the season.
Freshman Bubby Vernon (Boulder, CO/Santa Barbara) led the Cannoneers with 18 points, five rebounds and four steals. Sophomore Andrew Yaglenshi (Frederick, MD/Urbana) and classmate Khari Jones (Queens, NY/Campus Magnet) added 11 points and seven rebounds off the bench.
Chipping away at three, 11-point deficits, the Cannoneers trimmed the Fisher lead to seven at the intermission on a pair of Yaglenski free throws. After several empty possessions by both teams to begin second half play, Malik Wilson began Fisher's second half run with a free throw of his own. Led by Shular, Fisher (15-11) would take advantage of four Cannoneer turnovers and connect on five consecutive shots over the next 1:52 to break the game open.
Vernon's fourth three-pointer of the game would finally end the Fisher run, but with the score 55-36, the damage was already done.
After a defensive effort that kept the Cannoneers within striking distance in the first, Fisher heated up, scoring its 65 points on 26-for-42 shooting (61.9%), including 10-for-18 from behind the arc.
"We just have to have the right effort and attitude on defense for two halves," Lee added.
UP NEXT: The Cannoneers close out their 2015-16 regular season as part of a Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Confernce doubleheader with King's College on February 12 at 8:00 p.m. The Cannoneers defeated King's, 75-66 in overtime on January 18. Yaglenski had a career-high 35 points and Vernon had a triple-double to lead the Cannoneers. During the game, one Pratt student will have an opportunity to win $5,000 with a halftime, half-court shot.
TIP-INS: Sophomore Akhil Mulay (Pune City, India/Delhi Public) scored the first points of his collegiate career with a second half jumper …Vernon reached double-figures in points for the fifth consecutive game …Jones has led the Cannoneers in rebounding in four of the six games he's played this season …Neither team registered a blocked shot.
