SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Behind its best offensive performance in nearly two years, Evangel heated up early and never cooled off, torching the Ashcroft Center nets in a 108-89 Heart of America Athletic Conference victory over Missouri Valley Wednesday evening.
Evangel connected on 18-of-35 (0.514) three-point attempts and 35 total tries from the field to log season highs for both statistical categories and extend its win streak to four games. The duo of Cade Coffman and Edriel Martinborough combined for 54 points, as the Valor topped the century mark for the first time since February 2020.
Coffman finished with a game-high 28 points, shooting 8-of-16 from the floor (including 4-of-10 from beyond the arc) and 8-of-10 from the foul line, while Martinborough totaled 26, on a 10-of-16 shooting effort.
After both clubs turned in solid first-half offensive performances that resulted in a 51-51 deadlock at the break, EU wasted little time in gaining the upper hand in the second stanza. Martinborough canned a three-pointer on the Valor’s opening possession of the half, before a Coffman layup, another Martinborough triple and three Pavel Antonov free throws handed the home club a 62-54 advantage less than four minutes into the period.
MVC cut into the Evangel lead over the ensuing two minutes, drawing to within five points on a pair of Hayden Sprenkel free throws at the 15:27 mark.
But the Valor responded with the game’s key spurt, as Coffman and Martinborough combined to tally the next 14 EU points to stretch the margin to double digits.
Jace Coffie converted his second key bucket of what would become a 37-21 EU outburst, pushing the bulge to 12 points, before a Stephen Salvi trey and another Martinborough jumper made it a 95-78 contest with just over six minutes to play. The lead swelled to as many as 21 on two separate occasions down the stretch, as five different EU players finished in double figures for the first time this season.
In addition to the exploits of Coffman and Martinborough, Manrique Alvarado recorded 15 points and a career-best seven helpers to key a season-high 28-assist night by the Valor offense, which connected at a 50-percent clip from the floor (35-of-70). Salvi and Logan Rodgers added 10-point scoring performances, while both Antonov (8) and Autry Acord (7) finished just one field goal shy of joining EU’s list of double-figure scorers.
The offensive slugfest started with torrid early stretch that saw Evangel race out to a 9-4 lead, only to see MVC counter with a 10-3 scoring run to turn a one-point game into a 28-20 lead with 10:25 to play in the opening half. The Vikings’ Carson Cavalier accounted for eight of those points, hitting three free throws and knocking down a long triple to stake his squad to the early cushion.
Evangel bounced back by scoring 13 of the next 17 points over a three-minute stretch to take 33-32 lead on a Martinborough three-pointer at the 6:49 mark.
Next, a Sprenkel jumper put MVC back on top, but Coffman followed with a layup and another Martinborough triple gave EU a four-point advantage. Acord’s three with 3:28 to play gave the Valor a 44-40 lead, but MVC ended half on an 11-7 run to even the score.
TJ Wallace paced the MVC attack with 26 points on 10-of-18 shooting, adding 10 rebounds, three assists and two steals. Cavalier contributed 21 points and four assists, as the Vikings matched the Valor’s 50-percent shooting night by knocking down 31-of-62 field goal attempts.
LOOKING AHEAD
Evangel will conclude its two-game home stand Saturday (Jan. 15) afternoon when its hosts Culver-Stockton for a 2 p.m., Heart Conference contest at the Ashcroft Center.
For the latest information on Evangel Athletics, visit Facebook at Facebook.com/EvangelValor, Twitter (@EvangelValor), or EvangelAthletics.com. Fans can also receive updates on their favorite EU teams by downloading the Evangel Athletics Gameday App through the App Store or Google Play.
