UNIVERSITY CENTER, Mich. – No. 8 Macomb Men's Basketball was on the losing end of a game for only the third time all season – second time in conference play – Monday (Feb. 14) when the Monarchs were upended by the host Delta Pioneers, 89-70. On a night where seemingly little went right, the Monarchs showcased their resolve and held a 65-63 lead with 6:30 remaining. The Pioneers caught fire from there and ended the final 6:30 on a 26-5 run to earn their fourth win over a ranked team this season.
The Monarchs fell to 19-3 overall and 9-2 in the MCCAA Eastern Conference after the loss. The Pioneers ended the night at 12-11 overall and 8-4 in league play.
Despite the setback, the Monarchs remain in first place in a grueling MCCAA East, ahead of second place Henry Ford (9-4) and third place Delta (8-4). The Monarchs will be forced to regroup quickly as No. 18 Mott visits Warren Wednesday (Feb. 16) for a 7:30 p.m. tip-off. The Monarchs will look to avenge last week's 81-78 loss at Mott when they face the Bears Wednesday evening.
After a slow start, the Monarchs found themselves battling back from a nine-point deficit in the first half, trailing 31-22 with 2:39 remaining in the opening stanza before triples by Elijah Belle (Detroit, Mich./Davenport), Tariq Humes (Farmington, Mich./Elevation Prep) and Jiovanni Miles (Novi, Mich./Wisconsin-Green Bay) brought the Blue & White to within three at the break, 36-33.
Second half action saw Delta cling to the lead until a John Ukomadu (Bloomfield, Mich./Vincennes) dunk and Belle 3-pointer on back-to-back possessions gave the Monarchs a 65-63 lead. Unfortunately for the Monarchs, it was all Pioneers from there as the Blue & White couldn't get anything to fall down the stretch in the road setback.
Miles led the Monarchs with 19 points (3 3PM), eight rebounds and four assists, while Belle followed closely with 18 points (4 3PM) of his own and five boards. Humes and Jaylen Daughtery (Detroit, Mich./Mott) tallied nine points each. Daughtery also pulled down eight rebounds, while Ukomadu and Delano Williams (Mt. Clemens, Mich./Mt. Clemens) combined for 15 points.
Wednesday's game against the 18th-ranked Bears will be streamed live on www.MacombMonarchs.com/Watch.
