Newman scores early, often in rout of Fulton

The Comets raced out to a 19-3 lead in the first 4 1/2 minutes and didn't look back in posting a 73-50 victory over the Steamers on Monday. It was a makeup of a game postponed Dec. 21 because of inclement weather.

Newman (17-4, 8-1 Three Rivers) did whatever it wanted on the offensive end early in the game, hitting 13 of 22 shots in building a 27-10 lead after one quarter. Senior center Kyle Moore (5-for-5) and senior guard Nic Miller (3-for-3) were particularly accurate from the field.

"We really wanted to jump on them early because we knew they had beaten Erie earlier this year," senior guard Lucas Terveer said. "We wanted to put them away early so it wasn't a game."

"We were getting great shots," Newman coach Ray Sharp added, "and we were running the floor. I thought we played really hard both offensively and defensively. Our defensive intensity led to some points, our transition offense led to some easy points, and then when it was halfcourt, we executed really well."

Fulton (5-19, 2-7), meanwhile, didn't offer much resistance on the defensive end. It's been a problem when the Steamers take on elite teams.

"We need to play better defense," Fulton senior forward Nick Fish said. "The games we've been in and the games we've won, we've played good defense. We were talking, moving and rotating. We need to work on that and come out and do it the next game."

Newman's biggest lead was 69-36 after a putback by reserve forward Ryan Schaab at the end of the third quarter. The Comets were 32-for-63 from the field at that point, with just three turnovers. Fulton sliced into the deficit against Newman reserves in the fourth quarter.

"Our help defense really wasn't there, and it all starts with communicating," Fulton coach Rick Norman said. "Whether we switch or fight through a screen, there was no communicating, and that left us where we were playing two guys on one, and leaving their guys wide open. The end result was a bad thing for us because they got easy buckets."