Tusculum (1-2) led wire-to-wire while shooting 58.1 percent from the floor, including 9-of-15 (60%) in the second half. The Pioneers also dominated near the basket, out-rebounding Hiwassee by a 40-26 margin and out-scored the Tigers 38-14 in the paint.
TC junior center Tommy Klempin tallied his first collegiate double-double with career highs of 16 points and 10 rebounds. Klempin shot 5-of-8 from the field and blocked a career-best four shots on the night.
Senior Rob Troutman and junior Justin Steigerwald each tallied a dozen markers, while junior Kevin Vest added 11 points and five assists. Sophomore forward JD Miller tallied a career-high 10 points on 5-of-7 shooting to go along with his five boards.
Zack Williams led the Tigers (1-2) with a dozen points and seven rebounds, would LaZerick Boyd and Adam Gibson accounted for nine and eight points, respectively.
Tusculum used a 14-4 run early in first half to take a 19-9 lead with 11:25 remaining before the intermission. The Tigers trimmed the deficit to single digits at 19-12 following a Gibson trey at the 11:01 mark.
The Pioneers would distance themselves over the next eight minutes, utilizing a 16-3 run as Tusculum shot 7-of-11 from the floor during the spurt, including back-to-back 3-pointers by Vest and Steigerwald as TC led 35-15 as the Pioneers would take a 37-19 lead into the locker room.
Tusculum was never threatened in the second half as the Pioneers vaulted out to a commanding 28-point lead at 50-22 with 13:12 left in the game, following a lay-up by Steigerwald. TC would lead by as many as 29 later in the contest before the final horn sounded.
The Pioneers limited the Tigers to shoot just 23.2 percent from the field, including 6-of-28 in the second half (21.4%).
The win was also the 398th career victory for Tusculum head coach Jim Boone.
Monday marked the first time since Valentine’s Day in 2009 that five Pioneers scored in double figures (vs. Carson-Newman).
Tusculum will host the Pioneer Classic this weekend at Pioneer Arena beginning with Friday’s tilt with Hillsdale College at 7 p.m.
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