FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. -- Three starters tallied at least 15 points as the Methodist men's basketball team earned a 75-63 victory against LaGrange in the Riddle Center on Saturday afternoon.
 
Rae Hall led the Monarchs (12-8, 6-3) with 21 points on 7 of 14 shooting from the floor and making all five of his free throw attempts. Hall also led with seven rebounds and added two assists. Davion Ayabarreno finished the day with 18 points also shooting 7 of 14 from the floor, including 3 of 5 from beyond the arc. Bryan Rouse hit four three-pointers on his way to finishing the game with 16 points. He also pulled down five rebounds and recorded three steals.
 
For the Panthers (10-9, 3-5), Alex Bonner registered a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Elijah Adedoyin finished with 15 points on 3 of 8 shooting from three-point range, while Travis Thompson ended with nine points, three assists and two steals. LC's leading scorer Justyn Olson was held to just two points on 1 of 10 shooting from the floor.
 
LaGrange scored the first points of the game before 16-2 run gave MU a 12 point lead (16-4) five minutes into the game. During the stretch, the Monarchs made 6 of 9 shots from the floor, including four treys. The Panthers pulled within six points (26-20) after a layup by Jacob Gaetanos before the Green and Gold scored nine of the next 13 points to take an 11-point lead (35-24) into the half.
 
In the second period, LaGrange went on a 12-2 run to close the gap to just one point (37-36) with a 15:19 remaining. The Monarchs responded by scoring the next five baskets capped off with a dunk by Troynell Reese to extend the lead to 10 points (46-36). The Panthers worked the lead down to three points before a three-pointer from Adedoyin tied the game for the first time. A Jamison McCray layup gave LaGrange its first lead since the opening minute of the contest. Consecutive layups from Ayabarreno and Hall gave the lead back to the Monarchs before embarking on an 18-5 run to end the game with a 75-63 victory.
 
Jackson Whitley tallied six points, four rebounds and five blocks, while Reese added four points with six rebounds on Saturday afternoon.
 
The Monarchs shot 43.9 percent (25-57) from the floor and hit on 47.6 percent (10-21) of attempts from long range compared to the Panthers who finished the day 35.8 percent (24-67) from the field. MU outrebounded the visitors by a 40-34 margin, but the Panthers forced 16 turnovers compared to making 10. The Monarchs made 15 of 16 (.938) from the charity stripe, while LaGrange hit on 9 of 14 (.643) from the line.
 
Methodist returns to action on Wednesday, Feb. 1, as it travels to face Greensboro at 5 pm.