St. Bonifacius, Minn. - The Crown College men's basketball team tipped off its season in dominant fashion on Friday evening, rolling to a convincing 79-40 home victory over Oak Hills Christian inside the Teal Athletic Center.
The Polars took control right from the opening tip, establishing a double-digit cushion within the first eight minutes and never looking back. Crown went into the halftime break firmly in control with a 46-20 advantage and continued to dictate the tempo throughout the second half, stifling the visiting offense and stretching the margin to as much as 40 points in the final minutes.
Anthony Knight led all scorers with a stellar 22-point outing, connecting on 4-of-5 attempts from beyond the arc and converting all four of his free throws while dishing out four assists and swiping two steals in 26 minutes of action. Jude Wilkins was dialed in from deep, knocking down all three of his three-point attempts on his way to 15 points, six rebounds, and four steals without committing a turnover. Tyler Smith made his presence felt on both ends of the floor, notching a double-double with 12 points, a game-high 13 rebounds (six offensive), three assists, and three blocks. Joe Sullivan gave the Polars a major spark off the bench, tallying 10 points on 4-of-8 shooting alongside a team-high five assists and four boards. Tristan Youngblood chipped in four points and six rebounds, while Ethan Bergloff corralled six boards and sank a pair of free throws in the starting lineup. Alek Hodny added four points and eight rebounds in reserve, TJ Starkey contributed four points and three boards, Micah Fuller also knocked down a triple and pulled down five rebounds.
Crown delivered an all-around performance on both sides of the ball, shooting 36.5% from the field and 34.4% (11-of-32) from three-point range while converting 87.5% (14-of-16) at the charity stripe. The Polars thoroughly controlled the glass with a 55-35 rebounding advantage—including 19 offensive boards—generated 21 points off 15 opponent turnovers, and recorded 18 assists on 27 made field goals while limiting the opposition to just 25% shooting from the floor.
