SALEM, W.Va. – Salem University men's basketball senior Malik Toppin and sophomore Shawn Christian combined for 54 points in a commanding 105-90 win over Penn State Mont Alto, Monday afternoon.
 
With the win, the Tigers boast a 3-1 record, while Penn State Mont Alto drops to 3-1.
 
This marks Salem's best start in over four years.
 
The Tigers were led by Toppin as he notched a double-double with 28 points and 11 rebounds, while Christian netted 26 points on 8-for-10 from behind the arc.
 
The only other Tiger in double figures was freshman Fonz Hale with 16 points, three rebounds and two assists.
 
As a team, Salem shot 56.9 percent from the field (37-65) and 50 percent from three (15-30), while Mont Alto shot 45.7 percent from the floor (32-70).
 
The Tigers outrebounded the Lions 43-24, while Salem also dished out more assists 18-10.
 
Salem did not trail in the entire contest, as Christian started off hot with two back-to-back threes to give the Tigers a 6-0 lead at 19:09 in the first half.
 
Senior Chris Shield hit a layup at 14:16 in the first half as the Tigers expanded their lead to 10 over Mont Alto.
 
The Tigers held its largest lead of the first half with three minutes to go in the half as Toppin connected with an and-one layup, knocking the free throw down for an 18 point lead, 51-33.
 
In the second half, Salem held the largest lead of the game with 12 minutes remaining 78-56 off one of
Christian's eight three-pointers.
 
With 53 seconds remaining in the game, junior Malique Ross found Toppin with a beautiful alley-oop to take a 102-86 lead over the Lions.
 
The Lions were led by Jalen Smith who posted a game-high 32 points to go along with five rebounds.
 
The Tigers are back on the court Friday, as they travel to Owensboro, Ky. for the Kentucky Wesleyan Thanksgiving Classic with a matchup against Kentucky Wesleyan at 8:45 p.m. est.