The Mid-Atlantic Christian University Mustangs Men's Basketball team defeated the Christendom Crusaders 64-49 at home on Saturday afternoon. The game started out slowly, with neither team having a definitive advantage. With Christendom leading 5-4 early on, Jalen Jones collected an offensive rebound, and made a layup to give the Mustangs the 6-5 lead. Following the lead change, MACU switched to a full-court press, and were able to use their athleticism and intensity to change the pace of the game. 

The Mustangs went on a 14-4 run, to lead 20-9 before Christendom called a timeout with 9:54 left in the half. MACU finished the half strong, leading 37-25 at the half. 

The second half saw Christendom come out with more energy than the first, and were able to cut the Mustangs lead to seven points just one minute into the half. MACU relied on their defense to create more turnovers, and extended the lead up to 19 at one point. Due to strong defense, and timely shots, the Mustangs were able to walk away with a comfortable margin of victory. 

"This weekend feels like a marathon for the team. 3 games in three days with one more to play. As usual, Christendom never stopped coming at us. They always play us hard, never giving up. It was a good bounce back victory for us today," said First Year Head coach, Charles Sims. Sims continued,  "Our defense stepped up with a better performance and our shooting percentage improved from our previous  game. There are still certain areas of the team's play that needs some polishing, and we will continue to work in those areas to improve."

Senior Talik Totten led the way for the Mustangs today, with a game-high 22 points and four steals, and also picked up three assists and two rebounds. Jeremiah Dickerson helped provide offense off the bench, with 14 points on 6/10 shooting,  as well as six rebounds, an assist and a blocked shot. Noah Richardson-Keys also had a productive game, with eight points and eight rebounds, alongside his three steals, two assists, and one blocked shot. 

The Mustangs are back in action on Saturday, December 10th when they travel to take on Carolina University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.