MOUNT BERRY, Ga. – Liam Ward scored a game- and career-high 14 points in his first college start to help visiting Guilford College to a 68-58 basketball win over Berry College Tuesday night. Quakers’ senior Carson Long also scored 14 points and Steve Ruszala netted 12 points off the bench as Guilford improved to 6-4 with its third-straight win.
Ward, who started in place of injured team scoring leader Marcus Curry, dropped in 11 second-half points as Guilford built a 15-point lead with five minutes left in regulation. He made six-of-eight shots in 24 minutes, including both three-point attempts, and secured a game-high eight rebounds. Joah Logan also heated up in the second half when the sophomore guard scored all 11 of his points. He made all four field goals, including three trifectas.
Guilford, which never trailed, posted its second-highest field-goal percentage this year (47.5%) and committed a season-low nine personal fouls. Four Quakers scored in double figures to help absorb Curry’s absence and his 16 points per game. Redshirt-sophomore Jaylen Gore (Greensboro, N.C./Northwest Guilford) distributed a game-high eight assists and Long added four.
Caleb Haynes shared game-high scoring honors with 14 points and grabbed a game-best 12 boards for the Vikings (7-3), who fell for the second straight game. Cory Johnson contributed 11 bench points for Berry, which shot 37.3 percent from the floor and 19.4 percent from behind the arc.
Coach Tom Palombo’s Quakers host the Guilford Classic December 29-30 in the Ragan-Brown Field House. Guilford meets Greensboro College on the 29th at 4:00 p.m. and Muskingum University the following day at 4:00 p.m.