Box Score
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – The Slippery Rock University men's basketball team trailed Central Michigan University by just six points with 10 minutes remaining in regulation before a late Chippewa run gave CMU a 91-74 exhibition victory Saturday afternoon at McGuirk Arena in Mount Pleasant, Michigan.
Saturday's game was The Rock's second exhibition contest against an NCAA Division I team in the last 72 hours as SRU also played at the University of Tennessee on Thursday before making the 600-mile trip to play Central Michigan.
Central Michigan jumped out to a 25-8 lead through the game's opening 10 minutes before SRU fought back with a 31-18 run over the remainder of the first half to cut CMU's lead down to 43-39 heading into halftime.
Khyree Wooten scored 12 points over the spurt.
Slippery Rock kept Central Michigan's lead to single digits through the majority of the second half, but with 5:06 left to play the Chippewas broke the game open by going on a 12-2 run over a two minute stretch to increase its lead to 87-68 en route to the eventual 91-74 victory.
Wooten finished the game with a team-best 20 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the field overall, which included a 2-for-3 showing from 3-point range.
George Chase came off the bench to tally 19 points, seven rebounds and two blocks. Chase was an efficient 6-for-9 from the field and a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line.
Christal Malalu chipped in nine points and six rebounds while
Merdic Green added six points, five rebounds and four assists to round out The Rock's top performers.
The Rock finished the game shooting 43.5 percent from the field (27-of-62), 23.1 percent from 3-point range (3-of-13) and 85 percent from the free throw line (17-of-20). SRU posted a 40-30 edge in rebounds and outscored Central Michigan 22-11 in second chance points after pulling down 18 offensive rebounds. SRU committed 13 turnovers Saturday, down from 30 in its exhibition opener at Tennessee.
Slippery Rock also held advantages over Central Michigan in points in the paint (28-24) and bench scoring (34-22).
Central Michigan shot 48.1 percent from the field (26-of-54), 44.4 percent from long range (12-of-27) and 75 percent from the free throw line (27-of-36). CMU was led by Marcus Keene, who scored a game-high 32 points in addition to passing out five assists.
Slippery Rock officially begins its 2016-17 season with two games at the MEC-PSAC Challenge Nov. 11-12 in Shepherdstown, West Virginia. SRU plays No. 7 Wheeling Jesuit University Nov. 11 at 5 p.m. and host Shepherd University Nov. 12 at 7 p.m.
