Albion holds off Hope in 'stepping stone' win after coach returns from suspension

HOLLAND - The Albion College basketball program has been through a lot in the past month - a coach's suspension, the team threatening to boycott, a losing record and a long road to contention.

But the Britons looked like the MIAA-title-contending team they have been the past few years on Saturday, rolling out to a big lead, then withstanding a late rally to take down Hope College 79-78 at DeVos Fieldhouse in Holland.

"This is a huge deal. We have been dealing with a whole lot of things through the course of the season. This is one of the games we had on our minds because of how we lost to them the last time. This is a real big deal for us," said Albion guard Fred Garland, who scored 30 points. "This was our stepping stone of putting everything in the past and focusing on basketball. It has been extremely hard. We are dealing with a lot. This can be a huge game for us the rest of the season. We are coming together and we can still win the league tournament. That is our aspiration at this time."

Albion coach Jody May was suspended for three games this month after an investigation by the college after allegedly repeating a racial slur during practice that was used by a player.

"I am not going to lie, it has been hard for everyone. We have a lot of positive momentum, and you saw that today. We are heading in the right direction as a team," May said. "I don't know if you are ever past things, but we have started a lot of the healing process and understanding each other - knowing that we can trust each other. We just keep moving in the right direction."

According to reports confirmed by the school, May kicked a player out of practice, who is Black, for using a racial slur in December. According to reports, May repeated that slur four times during that same practice, but in the context of quoting the player who was kicked out of practice.

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May declined to get into the specifics of the report, preferring to talk about the team's victory, improving to 5-13 and 3-5 in the MIAA.

"I don't think we need to talk about those things that we have gotten through. I want to keep moving in the right direction," May said.

After his suspension, he apologized to the team, according to the school, and was reinstated after the investigation was concluded.

"Albion College recently addressed an internal issue involving the men's basketball team that stemmed from a practice session where our coach disciplined a student-athlete for using a racial epithet. When players questioned the coach about this matter after practice, the coach repeated what the student had said when he explained the discipline taken," said Mary Ann Sabo, spokesperson for Albion College, told the Detroit News. "The coach has since apologized to the team for this regrettable lapse in judgment. He has sat out several games and is undergoing sensitivity training."

May agreed with Garland that this win was part of the healing process.

"It is really important, and the credit goes to our guys, that we could make excuses, but we are coming together," May said. "They played hard, smart and together. When you do that, good things happen."

Albion led by as many as 23 points and forced 19 Hope turnovers. Garland was 9-for-10 from the free-throw line. In addition to Garland's 30 points, Jonathan Armstead-Wilkerson had 15 and Michael Calhoun added 11.

For Hope College, it was a disappointing showing, as early shooting woes continued to plague the Flying Dutchmen.

Hope trailed 22-10 early and 43-24 at halftime.

The Flying Dutchmen chipped away and pulled within 55-46 on a 3-pointer by Clayton Dykhouse with 8:50 to go. Later, Dykhouse converted a three-point play to pull Hope within 63-52 with 5:44 to go.

In between, the Britons managed to get to the basket and make some free throws to stop Hope's momentum.

Eli Schoonveld sparked Hope with a dunk and a 3 to make it 70-61 with 3 minutes to go. Evan Thomas pulled Hope within 70-63 with 2:28 to go.

Dykhouse made two free throws to pull Hope within five at 72-67 with 50 seconds to go.

Armstead-Wilkerson made two free throws for the Britons, then Hope's Gabe Quillan made a 3 to cut the Albion lead to 74-70 with 40 seconds to go.

Dykhouse hit a 3 form the corner with 18 seconds to go to pull within 75-73.

Garland made two free throws to make it 77-73 with 15 seconds to go and give him 30 points for the game.

Dykhouse was fouled shooting a 3 and made two.

Albion's Nathan Steinman hit two free throws with 7 seconds to go.

Quillan hit a 3 at the buzzer but Albion hung on 79-78.

Dykhouse finished 27 points, including four 3s and going 7-for-7 from the free-throw line. Quillan had 16 points and eight rebounds. Thomas had 13 points and four assists.

Hope (11-8, 5-3 MIAA) shot just 18.8% in the first half but 51% in the second half during the comeback. But it was too little, too late - barely.

"Shooting woes is accurate, but the reason we made a comeback is because we were desperate." Hope coach Greg Mitchell said. "Why we aren't playing with our hair on fire in the first half and why we are not urgent all the time is the big question. That is from head coach to 17th player - how can we show up in DeVos in a great environment and not play with crazy passion. Credit to Albion. They were the aggressors. They were the hammer and we were the nail. There are no excuses."

Contact sports editor Dan D’Addona at Dan.D’Addona@hollandsentinel.com. Follow him on Twitter @DanDAddona or Facebook @HollandSentinelSports.

This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Albion holds off Hope in 'stepping stone' win after coach returns from suspension