The Capital University men's basketball team won in convincing fashion for the second straight game Saturday, taking down host Westminster 82-62 on the second day of the Buzz Ridl Classic in New Wilmington, Pa.
"We had some question marks entering the year, and this weekend we answered some of those questions," Capital coach Damon Goodwin said. "Tuesday night (against Wittenberg) is going to be a very different type of game, so we'll see how we adjust."
The Crusaders (2-0), who opened the season Friday with a 76-56 win over Thiel, outscored the Titans 43-25 in the second half of Saturday's game after overcoming a 10-point Westminster lead early in the first half.
Junior Spencer Niekamp (St. Henry, Ohio; at right) scored a game-high 24 points on 10-of-13 shooting, and was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player following the contest. Senior Kelly Winter (Dublin, Ohio), who filled up the box score on both days, finished with 18 points, five rebounds and four assists Saturday, and was named to the All-Tournament team.
"Spencer is one of our best shooters, but he also has some great post moves," Winter said. "He can really extend the defense, so he's tough to guard.
"We are a team-oriented group. We don't care who scores or does anything. One through 16, we can all play and all contribute."
Junior wing Michael Sommer (Celina, Ohio) added 14 points for Capital, which shot a sizzling 72 percent from the field in the second half, misfiring on just seven attempts in the frame.
Westminster (1-2) shot just 26.9 percent in the second half after hitting 53.1 percent of its attempts in the first.
"They shot very well at the start of the game, but we picked it up on defense about midway through the first half and denied some shots," Goodwin said.
After falling behind 24-14 midway through the opening half, the Crusaders tied the game at the 6:14 mark with an 18-4 burst, capped with back-to-back 3-pointers by Sommer and junior Damon Dillard (Westerville, Ohio).
The two teams went back and forth before Capital scored on its first three possessions of the second half and extended its lead to double digits on a jumper by Sommer with 11:27 to play.
The Crusaders outscored the Titans 46-26 in the paint and held a slight 33-29 edge in rebounds.
"(Westminster) started to gamble a little bit, and we did a good job of getting to the basket in the second half," Goodwin said. "Kelly did a great job of diving to the basket, creating his shot or finding open teammates."
Capital visits non-conference rival Wittenberg this Tuesday. Tip-off in Springfield, Ohio, is slated for 7 p.m.
"We had some question marks entering the year, and this weekend we answered some of those questions," Capital coach Damon Goodwin said. "Tuesday night (against Wittenberg) is going to be a very different type of game, so we'll see how we adjust."
The Crusaders (2-0), who opened the season Friday with a 76-56 win over Thiel, outscored the Titans 43-25 in the second half of Saturday's game after overcoming a 10-point Westminster lead early in the first half.
Junior Spencer Niekamp (St. Henry, Ohio; at right) scored a game-high 24 points on 10-of-13 shooting, and was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player following the contest. Senior Kelly Winter (Dublin, Ohio), who filled up the box score on both days, finished with 18 points, five rebounds and four assists Saturday, and was named to the All-Tournament team.
"Spencer is one of our best shooters, but he also has some great post moves," Winter said. "He can really extend the defense, so he's tough to guard.
"We are a team-oriented group. We don't care who scores or does anything. One through 16, we can all play and all contribute."
Junior wing Michael Sommer (Celina, Ohio) added 14 points for Capital, which shot a sizzling 72 percent from the field in the second half, misfiring on just seven attempts in the frame.
Westminster (1-2) shot just 26.9 percent in the second half after hitting 53.1 percent of its attempts in the first.
"They shot very well at the start of the game, but we picked it up on defense about midway through the first half and denied some shots," Goodwin said.
After falling behind 24-14 midway through the opening half, the Crusaders tied the game at the 6:14 mark with an 18-4 burst, capped with back-to-back 3-pointers by Sommer and junior Damon Dillard (Westerville, Ohio).
The two teams went back and forth before Capital scored on its first three possessions of the second half and extended its lead to double digits on a jumper by Sommer with 11:27 to play.
The Crusaders outscored the Titans 46-26 in the paint and held a slight 33-29 edge in rebounds.
"(Westminster) started to gamble a little bit, and we did a good job of getting to the basket in the second half," Goodwin said. "Kelly did a great job of diving to the basket, creating his shot or finding open teammates."
Capital visits non-conference rival Wittenberg this Tuesday. Tip-off in Springfield, Ohio, is slated for 7 p.m.
