COLUMBUS, Ohio - With their big second half rally to take out the Concord Mountain Lions on Monday, the Salem men's basketball was looking to use that energy to propel them in their next contest as they faced off with the Ohio Dominican Panthers on the road in Columbus. Despite a 7 point lead going into the half, the Tigers were bested by the Panthers 94-87. 

In the first half, Salem started off well with Justin Tene using his 6'9" frame to control the paint for the Tigers over a much smaller Panther lineup. Ohio Dominican answered right back with some hot outside shooting to keep the game close. After trading blows down the stretch, Stan Smith would hit a big three point shot just before the buzzer to put the Tigers up 47-40 going into the intermission. 

Coming out of the locker room, it was the Panthers who battled back initially to keep the game close. With a tight game on their hands, the Tigers went back to some old reliable scoring sources to keep themselves in the game with Markanthony Fidelis, Ian Hardy, and Stan Smith all scoring to keep the Tigers in the ball game. However, partway through the half, the scoring chances seemed to dry up for the Tigers, and the Panthers grew their lead to as much as 10. A brief rally for the Tigers would not be enough in the closing seconds, and Ohio Dominican got away with a 94-87 win over Salem. 

Despite the less than ideal result tonight, the scorebook did have some bright spots for the Tigers. Stan Smith led the way off the bench for the Tigers in a triumphant return to the lineup with 18 points. Markanthony Fidelis was just behind him with 13 points. Fope Okuyiga chipped in 11 points for the Tigers. Three Salem players finished the game with 10 points, namely Rodney Smith, Justin Tene, and Ian Hardy. Tene also had a double double for Salem with 10 rebounds.

Salem will have a short break to recuperate before they hit the road again this weekend. They are scheduled to head up to Buffalo, New York to take on East Coast Conference foe D'Youville on Saturday, January 21st at 4 PM.