SILOAM SPRINGS -- A see-saw affair that saw a 22-point second-half swing needed a Noah Taylor triple to end the Raven comeback bid after a strong start by the Golden Eagles as the John Brown University men's basketball team posted a 75-67 upset win over No. 24 Benedictine (Kan.) on Tuesday (Nov. 23) afternoon inside Bill George Arena.
The Golden Eagles (7-2) hit 5-of-7 from the floor to open the game on a 16-0 run as five different players scored and the JBU defense held the Ravens (6-3) to four empty possessions to start the contest.
The hosts sunk 19-of-29 (66 percent) in the first half and built a 19-point lead at the intermission, 49-30.
The second half was a different story, however, as Benedictine turned a 25-point deficit, 58-33, and used a 27-6 rally to pull within three 66-63. During the 9:13 rally, the Ravens went 11-of-12 from the field, while the Golden Eagles struggled with a 1-of-8 clip and five turnovers.
Then a one-possession contest, the teams traded free throws and a running layup from senior Luke Harper gave John Brown a five-point cushion, 70-65, before Taylor delivered the dagger from the top of the arc to extend the JBU lead to eight, 73-65.
After Nysir Scott's bucket at the 4:31 mark of the second half, Benedictine was held 0-of-4 from the floor as John Brown completed the upset by ending the night on a 9-4 run.
Harper led four Golden Eagles in double figure scoring with 18 points and 4-of-4 shooting from the stripe. Junior Payton Guiot contributed 13 on three triples and added four boards, while junior Nemanja Obradovic battled to a 3-of-4 effort from the field and 5-of-6 at the line for 11 points off the bench. Graduate student Densier Carnes scored 10 and pulled down a team-leading six rebounds.
While Benedictine leading scorer Matt Austin was held 0-of-6, Scott paced the Ravens with 12 points, while Jaiden Bristol, Eric Krus and Jayden Temme each contributed 11 points.
Despite shooting 22 percent in the second half (4-of-18), the Golden Eagles finished the afternoon just shy of 50 percent from the floor (23-of-47), but converted 21-of-29 (72 percent) from the line.
John Brown will now return for an exhibition contest at NCAA II Missouri Southern State on Saturday (Nov. 27) afternoon in Joplin, Mo. The contest is scheduled to tip at 3:30 p.m.
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