MONACA, PA – The Villa Maria College men's basketball team competed in the second day of the Beaver Holiday Tournament, hosted by Penn-State Beaver. The Vikings battled the hosts and walked away with an impressive 82-55 win as they head into the holiday break. Villa moves their record to 5-6 on the year, while Beaver drops to 6-6. 
 
Both teams came out of the gate scoring with Derick Simpson and Jeru Molson leading the way for the Vikings. After grabbing the 13-12 advantage at the 12:00 mark, Villa began to pull away. Juwan Beale knocked down two free-throws and then Jordan Heine nailed a three to put the team up six. Raymond Sims and Naim Bradley joined the scoring party as they helped the unit go up 31-18 with 3:41 to play. As the horn blew for halftime, Villa led 33-22. 
 
The Vikings came out firing in the second frame as Jaylin Rose and Simpson contributed layups to increase the advantage to 16. The two teams went back and forth for a few minutes, but Travon Holt converted two free-throws before Molson knocked down a jump shot that gave Villa a 50-30 lead with 15:00 to play. The lead never dropped below 16 the remainder of the game and seven straight points by Victor Fuller sealed the game and gave the team an 82-55 win. 
 
Simpson led the way with 15 points on 6-for-8 shooting from the field, while also grabbing five rebounds. Molson shot an efficient 7-for-11 to collect 14 points and also grabbed nine boards and three steals. As a team, Villa outscored Beaver 46-14 in the paint and took advantage of turnovers as they collected 19 points off of opponent mistakes. 
 
The Vikings get a break for the holiday's, but return on Saturday, Jan. 4 to take on Kent State at Tuscarawas at home. The game is set for a 4 p.m. tip-off. 
 
Be sure to stay up to date on all of your Vikings scores and awards by following @VillaVikings on Twitter and by liking the "Villa Maria Vikings" Facebook page.