HOUGHTON, N.Y. – One night after foul trouble limited him to only 14 minutes, two points and two rebounds, senior forward Johnathan Stowe responded in a big way.
 
The Houghton big-man posted a career high 31 points on 10-of-12 shooting from the field and an impressive 11-for-11 from the free throw line to lead the Highlanders past the visiting Nazareth Golden Flyers, 81-73, for their first conference win of the season.
 
Stowe also corralled a game-high 14 rebounds in the victory.
 
With the Highlanders leading by 14 midway through the second half, Nazareth mounted a comeback, eventually cutting the Houghton lead to four with less than four minutes remaining. 
 
Back-to-back layups by sophomore Dylan Lambert, coupled with some clutch shooting from the line, kept the Highlanders in control, securing the victory.
 
Game Vitals
Score: Houghton – 81 | Nazareth – 73
Records: Houghton: 6-5 (1-1 Empire 8)| Nazareth: 5-6 (0-2 Empire 8)
Venue: The Nielsen Center, Houghton College | Attendance: 142

Key Moments
>> With the two teams knotted at 14 midway through the first half, Stowe sank a pair of free throws and Phil Pellegrino converted a clutch three-point play that sent Houghton on a 7-0 run.
 
Nazareth regained the lead five minutes later before Lambert scored five consecutive points and Darius Brown drained a jumper. 
 
Stowe closed the half with a key basket in the lane to send the teams to the locker rooms with Houghton up by seven.
 
>> Inside of eight minutes with Houghton up by 12 in the second half, the Highlanders quickly reversed the ball to Samuel Ortega on the right wing, who quickly found Stowe unguarded inside and buried the dunk, putting the purple and gold up by 14, their largest margin of the game.
 
>> In the ensuing minutes, Nazareth guards Tyler Stenglein and Daniel Jacob caught fire, combining for 20 of the Golden Flyers 43 second half points, and cutting the Highlander lead to four inside of four minutes.
 
Lambert's clutch rebounds and baskets, along with a pair of key defensive stops, sealed the Houghton win.
 
Key Stats
>> Houghton did not miss a free throw until the final 30 seconds of the game, finishing an impressive 26-of-29 from the line. 

>> The Highlanders held advantages in both rebounds (38-32) and shooting percentage (49 percent-to-44 percent).  Houghton, however, shot 60 percent (15-of-25) from the floor in the second half.

>> Lambert finished another impressive night with 24 points, nine rebounds, four assists and only one turnover.
 
>> Jacob and Stenglein collected 17 and 15 points apiece, respectively, for the Golden Flyers, while Brendan Wind posted 12 points and six assists.

Coach's Corner
"We felt going in to this game that we would have an advantage on the blocks with Stowe, and we just kept going to him.
 
"The attention Stowe drew freed up Dylan [Lambert] to be able to hit some key shots. 
 
"Our coaches also thought we should have played Cody Johnson more with Stowe last night, and we did that tonight.  When the two of them were on the floor together we thought they worked together really well and Cody helped to free Stowe.
 
"Nazareth runs their system really well.  With only one day of preparation, I felt we guarded them very well.  Their guards do a really good job getting downhill on penetration.  They got going in the second half, but we made some really good adjustments down the stretch to limit their production.
 
"I was really proud of Darius Brown and Carl Holmes coming off the bench.  Darius gave us some great energy, and Carl was steady, knew his role, and executed the game plan really well." –Coach Corky McMullen
 
Next Time Out
The Highlanders continue conference play on the road next weekend when they travel to Hoboken, NJ on Friday to take on the Stevens Tech Ducks at 8:00 p.m.  On Saturday, the team will challenge the Hartwick Hawks at 5:00 p.m. in Oneonta, NY.