WAXAHACHIE, Texas -- Sporting a seven-point lead at the break, the John Brown University men's basketball team suffered a 79-74 setback inside the Sheaffer Center on Thursday (Dec. 2) night after No. 8 Southwestern A.G. (Texas) shot 65 percent from the field in the second half.
Graduate student Densier Carnes and senior Luke Harper each had 10 points in the first half, and the Lions hit just nine field goals, allowing the Golden Eagles (7-3, 2-1 Sooner Athletic) to take a 33-26 lead into halftime. The second half, however, featured a revived SAGU offense that poured in 17 field goals, including six triples.
The 12-point lead that John Brown held late in the first half dwindled quickly in the second period as the Lions (7-1, 4-0) started on a 21-8 run that turned a seven-point deficit into a 47-41 lead for the hosts.
The Golden Eagles couldn't recover as the lead swung by 26 points to a game-high 14-point lead late in the game as Southwestern A.G. took a 69-55 lead.
Late triples from Carnes and Harper pulled the visitors within three, 77-74, but the Lions hit 7-of-8 at the line in the final minute to preserve the come-from-behind win.
Harper finished the night on a perfect 6-of-6 shooting from behind the arc to lead all scorers with 28 points. Carnes hit 7-of-8 from the charity stripe and finished with 19 points, but no other Golden Eagle could contribute more than six points in the loss as JBU hoped to knock off a second straight top-25 opponent after handing No. 24 Benedictine (Kan.) a loss in Siloam Springs.
Four Lions finished in double-figure scoring, paced by Nykolas Mason's 24 points. Noah Boling added 16 while Joshua Kashila posted a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Isaiah Boling came off the bench to contribute 12 points in the Lions' victory.
John Brown will look to salvage the week with its first matchup ever with North Texas – Dallas on Saturday afternoon. The 3:45 p.m. tip will air live on the SAC Sports Network. The Trailblazers are competing in the first year as full conference members after joining the league last season.
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