Big early lead, strong finish push IU East past Rio men

Rio Grande Sports Information
     RICHMOND, Ind. - Two of the top three scorers on the Indiana University East men's basketball roster helped put the University of Rio Grande in an early deep hole.
     But after the RedStorm erased their 16-point first half deficit and forged a pair of second half ties, it was two of the Red Wolves' accessory pieces who commenced to digging yet again and, once complete in their efforts, threw away the shovels once and for all.
     Ibra Athie and Jake Johnson combined for all but 12 of IUE's first half point total, while Antuane Allen and Devon Woods scored 14 of the Wolves' final 20 points in an 87-76 victory over Rio Grande, Saturday afternoon, in River States Conference play on Lingle Court inside the Student Activities and Events Center.
     The RedStorm, who had won two straight and three of their last four on the heels of a seven-game losing slide, dropped to 10-11 overall and 5-6 against league foes as a result of the loss.
     IU East ended a five-game losing streak, improving to 7-13 overall and 3-6 in the RSC by virtue of its win.
     The Red Wolves spotted Rio a 3-0 lead when senior Miki Tadic (Hilversum, The Netherlands) buried a right-side jumper from beyond the three-point arc just 33 seconds into the contest, but then proceeded to reel off 23 of the game's next 27 points over the next six minutes for a 23-7 advantage.
     East hit 10 of its first 12 shots from the floor, with Athie and Johnson teaming for all of the 23 points in the game-opening run.
     Rio Grande rallied, though, and - thanks to eight first half three-pointers - found itself down just 42-41 at halftime.
     The comeback continued on after the break and saw the RedStorm draw even at 51-all on a bucket by sophomore Trent Hundley (Mt. Orab, OH) with 15:06 left to play.
     IU East regained the momentum and, over the course of the next nine minutes, went back up by as many as six points on two occasions - including 67-61 after a three-pointer by Johnson with 6:26 remaining.
     Rio Grande surged again and drew even a second time, 67-67, after a layup by sophomore Trey Robertson (Waverly, OH) with 4:53 left to play.
     At that point, Allen and Woods emerged from the shadows to turn the RedStorm away once and for all.
     Allen scored six of his of 10 points in the game over the final 3:42 of the contest, while Woods scored all eight of his points in the final 1:58, including a 4-for-4 showing at the foul line inside the final minute.
     Of the 14 points in which the duo combined for down the stretch, 12 were scored consecutively.
     It was still a one-possession game after a bucket by Hundley with 1:29 remaining had Rio within 76-73, but IUE closed the game on an 11-3 run to set the final score.
     The Red Wolves went 17-for-20 at the free throw line in the second half (85.0%) as the RedStorm fouled late to extend the contest and finished the game 21-for-25 at the stripe (84.0%).
     East also shot 52.7 percent overall (29-for-55) and 44 percent from three-point range (8-for-18), while enjoying a whopping 38-23 edge in rebounding.
     Johnson led the Red Wolves with 25 points, while also finishing with seven rebounds, six assists and a pair of steals.
     Athie added 22 points and a game-high 14 rebounds, while Colt Meyer netted 15 points - 11 of which came after halftime.
     Hundley led Rio with a game-high 26 points in addition to a team-best seven rebounds. Robertson tallied 15 points and had two steals, while Tadic finished with 11 and senior Erwin Gutic (Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina) had three assists.
     The RedStorm shot 49 percent overall (30-for-61) and 45 percent from distance (9-for-20), but only made it to the foul line nine times (7-for-9, 77.8%).
     Rio Grande is slated to return to action next Saturday when it hosts rival Shawnee State in a 3 p.m. tip at the Newt Oliver Arena.