Minter Scores 29 in Win over Earlham

Trey Minter | Berea College Athletics

By Press release submission

Jan 6, 2023

The Berea College men's basketball team closed out the 2022 calendar year with a win over Earlham College, defeating the Quakers 77-65 on Tuesday afternoon.

The Mountaineers sit at 7-5 overall and 3-3 at home.

Junior Trey Minter had an outstanding performance with a game-high 29 points (8-13 overall, 10-12 FT), four assists, and four rebounds. Senior Isaac Caudill scored 19 points and grabbed four boards. The Mountaineers held the Quakers to just 27.3 percent shooting from beyond the arc while knocking down 45 percent of their three-pointers.

Freshman Bryce Riley got the afternoon started as he made a cut toward the basket and sophomore Kaeden Twiggs connected a pass for the opening bucket. However, Earlham took the lead earlier in the contest as they held a 21-11 lead over Berea with 12:26 left in the half. The Mountaineers didn't let the double-digit deficit bother them as they outscored the Quakers 13-3 over the next three minutes to tie the game. Minter sparked the scoring burst with a three-pointer and Caudill followed with two three-pointers of his own.

The momentum stayed with the Mountaineers as they took a 10-point lead with 5:34 until halftime. The Quakers did well to handle the first-half pressure, trimming the game to 38-34 going into halftime. Berea shot an efficient 52 percent from the field in the first half and hit seven threes in the first 20 minutes.

Starting the second half the Mountaineers took a 42-37 lead with Riley leading the way behind two midrange shots to keep Berea moving. Earlham trimmed the contest to one point with a 4-0 run, but Caudill and Minter gave Berea some breathing room with a pair of layups. Earlham pulled to within one point again before Minter found freshman Andrew Jones open from beyond the arc and Berea led 49-45 with 13:43 left in the game.

The Mountaineers continued to apply pressure, pushing the lead to 10 points with 6:58 left in the game. But the Quakers wouldn't waiver as they scored quickly to cut the lead 63-57 with a little over four minutes left. Even with the late surge, Berea performed well late outscoring the Quakers 14-8 over the closing minutes to earn a hard-fought 77-65 win to close out the year.

After a much-needed winter break, the Berea College men's basketball team will return to action on Tuesday, January 3 against Campbellsville University- Harrodsburg. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m. in Harrodsburg, Ky.