MONTREAT, N.C.— The Montreat men's basketball team blew out its competition against the Kentucky Christian University Knights at home Saturday afternoon, hitting triple digits and defeating KCU 100-62. With the result, the Cavaliers improved to 5-3 overall and 4-3 in Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) play.
 
The home team powered out to a hot start, making and-one opportunities as well as 3-pointers to jump out to a nine-point edge over the initial four and a half minutes of the contest. Noah Dunn poured in a triple and converted an and-one, while Eli Idlett also made a bucket through contact in the early going.
 
Montreat pushed its advantage to double-digits shortly after the opening 16-7 stretch as the squad used the deep ball to expand its lead throughout the first half. Dunn and Tyler Rodrigue each knocked down three shots from beyond the arc in the opening 20 minutes to build a large advantage over the Knights. Following a short spurt by KCU that closed its deficit to four (22-18), the Cavs went on a 27-7 run to go up by 24, its largest lead of the initial period, with 1:48 remaining in the first half.
 
Dunn, Rodrigue and JaJa Davis all fueled the stretch with a combined 21 of the 27 points. Dunn scored 11 of his 20 first-half points during the span, while Rodrigue added nine of his 11 first-period points and Davis, who tallied the initial five Montreat points of the game, closed the half with 11 to go with six rebounds.
 
In the second half, the Cavaliers continued to play through contact. Rodrigue splashed home a pair of four-point chances, making 3-point shots while being fouled and then draining the ensuing free throw in each case. Rodrigue, who ended the contest with 24 points on 8-of-12 shooting (6-8 3-pt FG), propelled Montreat to as large as a 39-point advantage over the Knights with 1:47 left.
 
Dunn continued his impressive scoring night in the latter frame, adding 12 second-half points to conclude the day with a game-high 32 on 9-of-18 shooting. He (5-10 3-pt FG) and Rodrigue combined for all 11 of the team's makes from behind the arc.
 
Down the stretch, 16 players earned time on the court for the Cavaliers, who hit the century mark to win by 38. Jaylen Steele contributed with seven late points, while three others scored off the bench. Idlett (15) and Davis (13) both finished in double-digits in scoring for the competition. Davis led all players with nine boards.
 
"It was really good to get back home in front of our fans. Our guys really fed off that and played with a lot of energy and effort, which set the tone early," said head coach Garrett Jones, whose team had three weeks between home games. "We will continue to focus on playing consistent basketball for 40 minutes, and tonight was a step in the right direction," stated Jones.
 
Overall, the Cavs held Kentucky Christian to only 34.4 percent (22-64 FG) shooting on the day. Montreat, on the other hand, knocked down 43.8 percent (32-73 FG) of its chances. The Cavaliers led wire-to-wire and turned 19 turnovers from the visiting team into 35 points on offense.
 
Men's Basketball returns to its home court for a matchup with Union on Wednesday. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. inside McAlister Gymnasium.