MONTREAT, N.C.— In a battle of two of the best teams in the Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) Wednesday evening, the Montreat men's basketball team routed the Union College Bulldogs, winning by a score of 107-85 inside McAlister Gymnasium. With the victory, the Cavaliers improved to 6-3 (5-3 AAC) on the year.
 
Both teams came out of the gates on fire from the field in the quick tempo competition. Union knocked down four of its initial five attempts, while Montreat began 6-7 on the night. Due to the effective offense and scoring from JaJa Davis (eight points), Noah Dunn (seven points) and Evan Davis (six points), the Cavaliers found themselves up 26-17.
 
"I'm really proud of how our guys came out and set the tone early. We were locked in from the start," mentioned head coach Garrett Jones.
 
Dunn then found his stroke, utilizing hot shooting to guide the Cavs to a massive first-period advantage. The Greensboro, N.C. native drained back-to-back triples before scoring the remaining nine of his 22 first-half points during a 19-10 stretch that saw the home team go up by 20 (57-37) with just over a minute left in the half. Dunn ended his half shooting eight of 12 on field goals, including a 4-of-7 showing from downtown, to complete his impressive frame.
 
Offensive rebounds allowed Montreat, who already connected on 55 percent of its tries in the opening 20 minutes, to pad its lead. The Cavs grabbed seven boards on the offensive glass which directly resulted in 12 points as the team built its advantage up to 22 (59-37) at the break.
 
The Cavaliers pieced together a scorching performance on the offensive end of the floor through 20 minutes of game action, with seven made 3-pointers and an 8-for-9 showing at the charity stripe. JaJa Davis added 13 points to go with Dunn's game-high 22. Montreat held Union to a 45.2 percent (14-31 FG) effort in the half, forcing 10 turnovers.
 
Though the Bulldogs (6-6, 5-2 AAC) trimmed their deficit to 15 out of the intermission, the Cavaliers answered to grow their lead to as many as 32. Over a 10-minute span in the middle of the latter period, Montreat outscored Union 32-15 thanks to points from seven different players to put the game away.
 
Four Cavs finished the night in double figures, while 17 saw game action. Dunn concluded the matchup with a game-high 28 points to go with eight boards. JaJa Davis had as many rebounds and scored 22. Tyler Rodrigue made six of his eight attempts, three of four from beyond the arc, to end with 15 points. Eli Idlett rounded out the Cavaliers in double-digits with 10 and Evan Davis grabbed seven rebounds in 15 minutes.
 
"I have a tremendous amount of respect for Union and that program. You have to play at a very high level to beat them, and we were up to that challenge tonight," added Jones.
 
Overall, Montreat hit an unprecedented 52.6 percent of its shots (41-78 FG). A rebound differential of +14 (43-29) and 20 forced turnovers helped the home team create 18 more shot attempts than Union. Despite a 50 percent (30-60 FG) clip from the field, the Bulldogs trailed for all but 36 seconds of the game.
 
The 107-point offensive output in the triumph over the Bulldogs marks just the second time since 2006, and the first time in regulation, that the Cavs have scored triple digits against Union. Following a 100-point contest versus Kentucky Christian, Montreat notched back-to-back 100-point games for the first time since Jan. 23 and 26, 2019 in competitions against Truett McConnell and St. Andrews.
 
Jones mentioned, "We will enjoy this tonight, but now we hit the road again for a huge challenge as we look to finish off this first semester strong."
 
Men's basketball returns to the court on Saturday for a conference matchup with Bryan. Tipoff in Dayton, Tenn. is scheduled for 4:00 p.m.