Athie's Double-Double Helps Red Wolves Hold Off IU Kokomo

RICHMOND, Ind. – Ibra Athie scored 22 points and grabbed 18 rebounds as the IU East men's basketball team defeated IU Kokomo 82-80 Wednesday to open conference play.

The win gives the Red Wolves a 3-4 record but 1-0 in the RSC. IUE gave the Cougars their first loss of the season, falling to 8-1.

Chad Cox added 15 points and Colt Meyer was next with 14.

The Red Wolves were able to get out to a 6-2 lead within the first minute of the game, scoring on their first three possessions. Meyer, Cox, and Athie each had a layup.

Both teams would trade leads and keep their deficits to a minimum throughout the half. Meyer made a pair of free throws with 48 seconds to conclude the scoring in the first. The Red Wolves went into halftime up 45-41.

In the second, Cox made an emphatic dunk to get the scoring going for the Red Wolves for a 47-41. He grabbed the offensive rebounds, dribbled to the sideline, then cut toward the basket and slammed it home.

The Cougars went down and scored on the next possession but the Red Wolves would respond with their biggest run of the game. Leading 47-43, IUE went on a 27-14 run to lead 74-57 with 9:09 to play in the game.

But IU Kokomo would respond with a run of their own to make the game interesting down the stretch. A 23-8 run would cut their deficit down to just two points with 1:34 to play.

Thankfully for the Red Wolves, that was the last points of the game as they were able to hang on. The Cougars had a shot to send the game into overtime but their jump shot was short. They got the offensive rebound but Dell Demeyers' shot was not taken in time as the refs said time had expired before Demeyer's shot released.

The Red Wolves shot 48 percent from the floor. The Cougars shot a 55 percent clip, including 9-of-20 from beyond the arc.

IU East will host SMWC on Saturday at Lingle Court. Tipoff is scheduled for 3 p.m.