'Roo Men Fall to Centenary 79-71

SHERMAN, Texas – The Austin College men's basketball team got out-rebounded 57-41 and Centenary made 28-of-34 free throws to hand the 'Roos a 79-71 loss on Friday night in Hughey Gym. The 'Roos fall to 10-4 overall this season, and 0-4 in Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference play.

Both teams got out to a slow start offensively, and it wasn't until the 16:31 mark that Austin College got on the board with a bucket from Cedric Hudson to make it 4-2 with the Gents on top. The 'Roos briefly took a 7-6 lead on an Alan Sullivan three but Centenary used a 10-2 run to make it 16-9 with 12:49 left in the first half.

Austin College fought back to tie things at 18 with 8:56 remaining, but Centenary knocked down a trio of three pointers to help the Gents push the lead to 32-21 with 5:32 left before halftime. The lead grew to as much as 12 when Brandon Campbell hit a three to make it 39-27, and the Gents would take a 40-30 lead into the break.

Centenary maintained their lead early in the second half and led 52-41 with 14:42 left to play but a three from Sullivan jump started a small run that saw the 'Roos pull to within six at 54-48, and after Centenary pushed the margin back to double digits at 58-48, the 'Roos slowly started chipping away and pulled to within one at 62-61 on a basket by Hudson with 3:52 left in the game.

However, that's as close as Austin College would get, as Centenary would respond with a 9-0 run to make it a 71-61 game with 1:16 left, and the 'Roos were unable to get the margin under eight, finishing with a Jeremy Swisher layup to make it a 79-71 final.

Brian Baehl scored 18 points and grabbed eight boards while handing out five assists to lead Austin College, and Swisher scored 13 points off the bench. Hudson and Stephen Igbinosa each scored 12 points, with Igbinosa adding eight rebounds and five blocked shots, while Sullivan finished with 10 points and eight boards.

Travion Kirkendoll scored 27 points to lead all scorers, adding nine rebounds for the Gents, and James Sapp posted a double-double with 18 points and 18 rebounds.

Austin College will be looking to bounce back tomorrow when they take on Colorado College at 6:00 p.m. in Hughey Gym.

Austin College athletic teams participate as a member of the NCAA Division III and the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference.