Phillips' career day pulls Mustangs up for win

Freshman Quincy Phillips dropped a career-high 31 points and picked up his first collegiate double-double to lead The Master's to an 83-71 win over the Embry-Riddle Eagles Saturday in The MacArthur Center.

Phillips finished 10 of 22 from the field, 2 of 8 from 3-point range, and added 9 of 10 from the free throw line to collect his 31 points. He added 10 rebounds, three assists and a steal to his line for the best game of his young career.

"He's really talented for a freshman," said TMU Head Coach Kelvin Starr. "He's got a great demeanor and doesn't get rattled. And the scary thing is he's got a lot more to learn and he's teachable and coachable. I'm really excited for him. He's a special young player and we are blessed to have him. He's found a home here and it's fun to coach him."

As far as the game it was a tale of two halves for the Mustangs (18-3, 6-1), who shot 43% from the field in the first 20 minutes but allowed ERAU to hit better than 54% of their shots, including 4 of 6 from 3-point range, and 16 of 19 from the free throw line, to take a 46-40 lead into the locker room.

But in the second half the numbers changed drastically as the Mustangs defense showed up to play in the final 20 minutes. The Eagles were held to 6 of 22 (27%) for the entire second half, while The Master's hit 14 of 31 (45%) during that same stretch, to help TMU out-score Embry-Riddle 43-25 and claim the 12-point win.

"I thought Embry-Riddle did a real good job at the start jumping on us a little bit," Coach Starr said. "Their guard play was really good in the first half and we didn't adjust very well. We gave up too much penetration in the paint, and our defensive effort wasn't good enough in the first half. That was our challenge to them at the half."

In the locker room at the half, the TMU coaching staff talked about too many scout breakdowns defensively and how the demeanor of the team was not where it needed to be.

"The body language was dropped negatively and we needed to bounce back from that, and I thought we did in the second half," Coach Starr said. "We were a little more locked in defensively, and I think for (the Eagles), they are a very good shooting team and over time physicality and fatigue wears you down as a shooter. So we stayed the course there. And I thought we did a good job of being more intentional offensively and getting the ball inside."

Following Phillips' career game was Kaleb Lowery with 22 points and 11 rebounds for his tenth double-double of the season. Lowery also had a team-high five assists and a pair of blocks in the game.

The Master's will be on the road Thursday in Surprise, Ariz. to take on the OUAZ Spirit. TMU won the first meeting 80-67 at home on Jan. 11. Tip-off Thursday is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. PT.