Fort Dodge, IA—The Marshalltown Community College men's basketball team rolled to its third straight win to start the 2014-15 season, taking down Iowa Central Community College 85-76 on the road Monday night.
An early run keyed the Tigers' victory, the team's fourth straight win over the Tritons. Trailing 10-8, MCC put together 12 straight points, capped by a three from Terence Shelby Jr. (Peoria, IL/Limestone). The Tritons responded with a quick spurt of their own, but on back-to-back possessions, Guilherme Verardo (Sao Paulo, Brazil/Esporte Clube Pinheiros) knocked down a three and assisted on another to Shelby to put the Tigers up 34-25.
Shelby converted a layup in the final seconds of the first half to give MCC a 42-38 edge at halftime. Both Shelby and Verardo finished the first half with 10 points.
Foul trouble limited starting point guard Mike Rodriguez (Boston, MA/Redemption Christian Academy) in the opening frame, but the sophomore stepped up to start the second half, scoring four straight points to spark another Tiger run in the opening minutes.
The Tritons battled back, eventually tying the game for the first time since 10-10 at 52 a side. The Tigers went on to score 13 of the game's next 19 points, and built their lead to double digits with an 82-68 advantage thanks to a three-point shot from Rodriguez and the Tigers held on for the team's third consecutive win.
Rodriguez finished the night with a game-high 25 points, with 17 coming in the second half. The sophomore is averaging 25.3 points per game this year, with an average of 16 points coming in the second half.
Shelby produced a 20-point effort for the second straight game, dropping 24 points in the win.
Through its first three games of the regular season, the Tigers are averaging 82.6 points per contest.
MCC returns home for a date with Kirkwood Community College at 7:00 PM on Nov. 8 in the Student Activity Center.
