The sparkling Triton debuts of guard
Dayjaun Anderson and big man
Peitok Machar powered the fourth-ranked Trojans men's basketball team to an 87-52 blowout win over Daley College in the season opener at the Jordnt Athletic Complex gymnasium Nov. 1.
Anderson tallied all of his 19 points, including five three-pointers, in the first half while the 6-foot-1o Machar quickly tallied three of his game-high seven blocked shots early as Triton overcame inaccurate free-throw shooting on its quest to make another Division I Final Four.
"They're really good players," coach Brian Burns said of Anderson and Machar. "(Anderson's) a really a talented scorer. Peitok's a great rim protector. We're really excited to have them."
Anderson, fellow guards
Kaiden Space and
Vijay Wallace, Machar and returnee forward
Tolu Samuels comprised the opening starting lineup.
Anderson wasted no time showing talent that led him to three-time Dayton (Ohio) Player of the Year honors by hitting his first two shots as treys for a 6-0 lead. With his five three-pointers at halftime, his 19 points accounted for exactly half of the Trojans' production against the Bulldogs.
Meanwhile, Machar showed how much he is a fast developer, having only begun playing in 2020 growing up in Sydney, Australia. The Indian Hills Community College transfer was a load in the middle while Anderson warmed up, adding 14 rebounds and 12 points to his game line.
A transfer from Wright State, Anderson was happy to get off to a hot start, individually and team-wise.
"It's important doing well from the first game on," he said. "My shooting ability is going to help us. That will help make it better inside for Peitok."
Machar can offer the Trojans a dominating inside presence. He could open up the offense consistently producing double-digits as he did against Daley.
"He's an elite rebounder," Burns said of Machar, who had five offensive rebounds for his night. Â Added Anderson: "When Pietok gets it, it's hard to stop him."
In addition to locking down his shooting, Anderson wants to improve on his defensive reads as part of a team effort.
"Limiting other teams to one shot a possession," he said. "Get loose balls, the small things. Defense is something I work on. If we're good on defense, we'll be hard to stop with the offense we can put out there."
Another offensive producer was Philadelphia product
Chase Coleman, who had 15 points, including a trio of three pointers. Wallace had 12 points and a team-high five assists. Samuels had nine points and seven rebounds.
Burns is not going to rest on the laurels of the opener. The Trojans will work on free-throw shooting in this week's practices. The only blemish on the opener was a 7-for-20 line in free throws.
"It was shaking the rust off," he said. "We'll shoot it better than that going forward."
Triton will hit the road this weekend in the two-games in Moberly, Mo., against State Fair Community College and host Moberly Community College.
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(Story by tritonathletics.com contributor George Castle)
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