Columbus, Miss. - The Centenary men's basketball team won its second-straight game in decisive fashion as the Gents recorded an impressive 73-52 win over the Mississippi University for Women Owls in a non-conference contest on Tuesday at Pohl Gym.
The Gents (3-2) have now won their last two games by 20+ points following a 73-50 victory over the Millsaps College Majors on Sunday in the consolation game of the Millsaps College Tournament in Jackson, Miss. The Owls fell to 0-6 with Tuesday's loss.
Centenary has now allowed 60 points or less in a game for the sixth time since the beginning of last season and have held five of those opponents to 52 or less. The Gents also won consecutive games by 20 or more points for the first time since the 2018-19 season when they beat Texas Lutheran 89-69 (Dec. 30) and Colorado College (Jan. 4) 74-49.
Centenary shot a season-best 52.0 % from the floor, nailed a season-high 12 three pointers, and made 9-10 of free throw attempts in its best overall offensive performance so far this season. The Maroon and White had three players score in double figures, had a season-low eight turnovers, and led 43-23 at halftime.
Senior G AJ Hall (Thibodaux, La.) led the Gents with a career-high 21 points in 27 minutes off the bench on 8-10 shooting overall. He was a sizzling 5-6 from three-point range and had four rebounds and an assist. Senior F Jarrell Taylor (Leesville, La.) continued his hot start to his first season with the Gents after transferring from ETBU as he scored 16 points in 33 minutes on 6-10 shooting from the floor. He grabbed five rebounds and had two steals and an assist. He hit 2-4 three-point attempts and was 2-2 from the free throw line.
Taylor has now reached double figures in four of the Gents' five regular-season games this season after posting a career high 24 points and 13 rebounds in Sunday's win over Millsaps.
Junior G Jalen Behr (Athens, Ga.) scored 10 points in 23 minutes, making 4-7 shots from the floor and went 2-4 from three-point range. He added five rebounds and a steal. Junior F Seth Thomas (Kilgore, Texas) scored nine points in 15 minutes off the bench with two rebounds, two steals, a steal, and was a perfect 6-6 from the free throw line. Senior G Tevin Baker (Port Arthur, Texas) also scored nine and added three assists, three steals, and one rebound in 28 minutes.
Junior G Ralph Johnson (White Castle, La.) played 27 minutes and scored three points, grabbed three rebounds, dished out three assists, and had a pair of steals.
Junior F Joseph Wiggins (Bossier City, La.) scored two points in 18 minutes off the bench, Sophomore G/F Dylan Hooter (Mandeville, La.) played 10 minutes and scored one, and sophomore G Braeden Board (Rayne, La.) scored two points in 12 minutes and added four rebounds, an assists, and a block.
The Owls shot 41.5 % overall from the floor but made just 7-21 three-point attempts and were a dismal 1-10 from the free throw line. Two players reached double figures, as Terry Coleman Jr. and Milos Zeradjanin each scored 10. MUW outrebounded the Gents 33-26 but turned the ball over 20 times with Centenary scoring 32 points off those giveaways. The Gents also received 33 bench points to 19 for the Owls.
The Gents were in sync offensively from the start, taking a 20-7 lead just six minutes in and increased their lead to 30-10 at the 8:54 mark. Centenary's defense was also stingy, holding the Owls scoreless for over seven minutes as the Gents increased their lead at the same time.
The Owls did manage to cut the Gents' 20-point halftime lead in half at the 13:21 mark of the second half on a layup by Darion Ross to make it 50-40. Centenary however scored the next five points of the game and the Owls did not score again until Zeradjanin hit a three at the 9:32 mark to make it 55-43. The Gents' defense clamped down for the remainder of the half and continued to build their lead as they cruised to the win.
Centenary will be back in action next week for a pair of home games on Tuesday, Nov. 30 versus Millsaps at 6 p.m. and then Texas College on Saturday, Dec. 4 at 3 p.m.
A link to the Gents' complete 2021-22 schedule can be found here: https://www.gocentenary.com/sports/mbkb/2021-22/schedule
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