INDIANAPOLIS - The IUPUI duo of
Marcus Burk and
Jaylen Minnett combined to score 42 points as the Jaguars wheeled and dealed past Anderson University on Monday night (Nov. 11), 72-55. The Jaguars played at a breakneck pace, outscoring the Ravens 33-4 on fast break points and shooting 43 percent while holding Anderson to just 32 percent overall and 17 percent from three-point range.
"We got the monkey off our back. Guys were kind of stressing a little bit about getting that first win, but tonight, we got that monkey off our back. It was a good night for us," head coach
Byron Rimm II said. "We got the ball to the right people. The offense was moving a little better. I'd like for it to move a little more. It's still a lot of work to do.
"We're defending a little better, especially on the wings. We still have some work to do in defending the post, but I thought we did a better job getting in their space."
Marcus Burk scored 23 of his game-high 25 points in the first half as the Jaguars built a 49-29 halftime lead. Minnett was virtually in stride with his backcourt mate, finishing with 17 points as the duo combined to hit 8-of-19 three-point attempts. Junior
Elyjah Goss added a double-double off the bench, finishing with 11 points and 10 boards in just 14 minutes.
Grant Weatherford, who came off the bench for the first time in his IUPUI career, closed with seven points and nine boards while
Isaiah Williams contributed seven points and seven rebounds.
Burk tried to single-handedly bury the Ravens in the first half, scoring the Jags first nine points in less than four minutes as the hosts built a quick 9-2 lead, prompting a quick timeout. He later swished back-to-back treys, both on fast breaks, to extend the lead to 27-13, just past the midpoint of the half. He later capped the half by nailing another transition trey to end the first half scoring at 49-29.
"Honestly, it felt pretty good. My teammates were doing a great job of finding me in the open spots and getting me wide open shots. It felt good to be back here playing for IUPUI and playing in this first home game," Burk said.
Burk had the ultimate green light in the first half, hitting 9-of-14 attempts, including four first half treys. The Jags outscored Anderson 27-0 in the first half on fast break points as the Jags were constantly seeking transition opportunities.
"(Burk) got a lot of easy baskets. We wanted to push the ball and get it to people in the right spots," Rimm II said.
The Jaguars maintained the comfortable cushion for the entire second half, extending the lead to as many as 28 when Weatherford hit
Brandon Kenyon for a two-handed dunk with just under six minutes to play. After both teams went deep into their benches, Anderson closed the game on an 11-0 run to bring the margin to 17 by the final horn.
The wire-to-wire win was a welcome sight for a team that had yet to lead in either of the season's previous two games entering Monday night's contest.
"I think we came out with a little more intensity tonight than we have the past two games. We knew that it was time to put everything together and come out and play hard for each other," Minnett said.
"That's what we've been preparing for. We actually showed tonight how we want to play this season."
The Jaguars outrebounded Anderson by a 58-33 margin, including grabbing 16 offensive boards. In addition, IUPUI collected 10 steals, led by Burk's four and two from Weatherford.
"At practice, we've been emphasizing defense, playing aggressive, pressuring the ball and pressuring passing lanes, so that kind of showed a little bit tonight," Burk said.
Mike DePersia played a team-high 33 minutes in his first career start, finishing with four points and six boards.
IUPUI will be back in action on Wednesday night (Nov. 13) when they trek to South Florida for the first of four games in this year's Cayman Islands Classic. Wednesday's contest will be broadcast on ESPN3.
