Pearson Scores 36 To Lead Eagles to First Win

ANKENY, Iowa—The Faith Eagles men's basketball team has found the win column, thanks to a brilliant performance by sophomore Jared Pearson, who scored a career-high 36 points in an 82-76 victory over Union College Tuesday evening.

After a dismal first half of shooting by the Eagles (28.9%), Pearson took over, scoring 27 of his 36 points in the second half as Faith pulled away late for their first win of the season.

The Eagles struggled to keep pace with Union's potent inside attack for most of the game. The Warriors were led by 6'8" center Blake Essex, who positioned himself for easy baskets at the rim, scoring 27 points and grabbing 17 rebounds. Faith trailed 43-36 at halftime.

Union led by as many as six with ten minutes to play in the game, but that's when Pearson found his rhythm, willing his team to victory. Pearson scored 17 of Faith's final 30 points. The turning point in the ballgame came at the 9:04 mark when Union was called for a technical foul on top of a team foul, giving Pearson four free throws, which he sank to tie the game. Faith led most of the rest of the game, but the dagger came (again) from Pearson, who drilled a three-point basket with 1:27 remaining to stretch Faith's lead from one point to four points.

Faith received double-digit scoring from three other players. Jayce Goergen tallied 17 points, while James Busenitz and Andy Hecker came off the bench with 14 and 10.

With the victory, the Eagles improved to 1-2 on the season. Their next game is Thursday, December 2, at 5 p.m. at Spurgeon College. The Knights are 0-4.