SHERMAN, Texas – The Austin College men's basketball team used a balanced effort and pulled away late to earn an 80-65 victory over visiting Luther College on Wednesday afternoon. The win brings the team's overall record to 10-0, extending the best start in program history for the 'Roos.
Cedric Hudson led a scoring attack that saw 12 different players put points on the board for the 'Roos, finishing with 14 in the game, and Stephen Igbinosa just missed out on a double-double with 11 points and nine rebounds for Austin College. The 'Roos shot just under 45% from the field as a team, including 38.9% from three point range, while holding Luther to just 32.3% shooting from the field and 26.9% from long distance.
Both teams struggled to get into a rhythm early on, with Igbinosa's jumper helping the 'Roos get into double figures with an 11-7 lead with 14:12 left in the opening half. Four quick points from John Pass helped push the Austin College margin to 18-12 with 11:27 left, but the Norse fought back to pull to within two at 18-16.
However, an 8-1 run highlighted by treys from Alan Sullivan and Jeremy Swisher made it a 26-17 game with 8:30 remaining in the opening half. Igbinosa scored with 6:07 on the clock to make it a 30-20 game and give the 'Roos their first double-digit lead of the game, and the 'Roos would take a 37-28 lead into halftime.
Luther came out strong to start the second half with a 7-2 run, and after Austin College got the lead back up to 43-37, the Norse kept chipping away until a three from Christian Wright cut it to a 46-45 lead for the 'Roos with 12:35 left in the game. Josh Dickerman scored seven straight and Andres Rivera knocked down back-to-back threes as the 'Roos pushed the margin back to 10 at 59-49 with 7:45 left to play.
The Norse briefly got the lead back down to nine, but seven straight points for Austin College made it 66-50 with 5:37 left, and the 'Roos would lead by as much as 21 at 80-59 with just over a minute remaining.
Hudson and Igbinosa were the only two Austin College players to reach double figures, with Dickerman and Swisher each chipping in nine points off the bench while Pass, Rivera, and Sullivan all finished with eight. Sullivan added five assists, while Brian Baehl set a new career-high with 14 rebounds to go along with five assists and five points.
Nathan Meyer hit 3-of-5 threes on his way to 20 points and grabbed six rebounds for Luther, while Wright added 13 points and Jack Woolems scored 12 off the bench for the Norse.
Austin College heads to Irving this weekend to open up Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference play against the University of Dallas on Saturday.
Austin College athletic teams participate as a member of the NCAA Division III and the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference.