Men's Basketball Drops Season Opener At Houghton

HOUGHTON, N.Y. – Senior Jordan Jean (Englewood, N.J.) scored a career-high 26 points for the Wells College men's basketball team as they opened their season with a 95-86 road loss at Houghton College on Saturday. Wells drops to 0-1 on the year while the Highlanders snap a 17-game losing streak dating back to last season with their first win of the season.

With 26 points for the Express, Jean cracked the 200 career point plateau and has tallied 204 across a 23 game career in a Wells uniform. Securing a team-best 13 rebounds, Jean also picked up his fourth career double-double and scored 18 of his 26 total points in the first half alone. Sophomore Chris Courtney (Auburn, N.Y.) ranked second on the team in point scoring, tallying 16 points, while senior Joe Walton (Ocala, Fla.) registered 13 points for Wells.

Junior Jordan Bishop (Arlington, Texas) shot 4-for-8 from the floor and buried three shots at the foul line, rounding out the double-digit scorers for the Express. Senior Shakeel Simmons (Brentwood, N.Y.) bombed his team's lone three-point basket as Wells was 1-for-8 from distance in the contest.

Wells trailed by seven points with only 3:11 expired in the contest as a Johnathan Stowe layup put the Highlanders up by an 11-4 lead immediately after a three-point basket by Phil Pellegrino. After back-to-back foul shots by Brennen Campbell placed Houghton up by a 27-18 lead, Wells scored the game's next 15 points to take a 33-27 lead with 7:38 remaining in the first half.

The Express built up a 10 point lead following a Jean layup with 4:50 left in the first stanza, lifting his team to a 41-31 lead. A layup by freshman Darius Smith (Lanham, Md.) with 3:17 left in the first half elevated Wells to a game-high 11 point lead, but Houghton posted a comeback for the ages to eventually capture a 50-48 lead entering the locker room.

After trading the lead several times in the second half, Wells tied the game at 83 aside with 3:34 left in regulation time as Walton was fouled after a successful layup and buried the "and-one". Houghton took the lead for good immediately following the three-point play, scoring four points to capture an 89-83 lead with 2:08 left on the clock.

Despite a Courtney layup with 1:36 remaining, the damage had been done and Houghton was able to keep Wells at arm's length until the clock struck zero. The Highlanders outrebounded the Express by a 48-to-31 margin and poured home eight three-point baskets, claiming the victory despite a strong offensive performance by the visitors who shot 50.8% from the floor.

Five different players reached double-digit point totals for Houghton, including Stowe who shot 9-for-14 from the floor. Campbell converted an impressive 14-for-14 shots from the charity stripe while Jordan Scott was 3-for-6 from distance.

Wells returns to action this Wednesday, Nov. 19 as they host Alfred University at the Frances Tarlton Farenthold Athletic Wing in the home opener. The opening tip is scheduled for 7 p.m.