Shreveport - The Centenary men's basketball team gave the LSU Shreveport Pilots all that they wanted on Tuesday evening in a non-conference exhibition contest before falling 91-82 at the Dock on the LSUS campus.
The Gents played a superb first half as they built an 11-point lead and held a 47-38 lead at the break after shooting 55.6 % (15-27) from the floor. The Maroon and White shot a sizzling 70 % (7-10) from beyond the arc and made 10-11 free-throw attempts for 90 %.
Centenary shot 48.1 % (26-54) from the floor for the game as the Gents were 40.7 % (11-27) in the second half, as they went 5-11 from 3-point range for 45.5 %. The Gents, however, struggled at the free-throw line after halftime, making just 8-13 attempts.
The Pilots shot 48.3 % (28-58) for the game from the floor, 32-35 from the free-throw line for 91.4 % but struggled from deep, making just three of 11 attempts. LSUS also finished with a decisive rebounding advantage (42-25) and forced 23 Centenary turnovers. The Pilots, who committed 18 turnovers themselves, scored 27 points off of turnovers while the Gents tallied 13.
LSUS finished with a 42-22 edge in points in the paint and added 14 steals, 12 assists, and five blocked shots. Centenary had eight steals, eight assists, and three blocks. The Gents received 26 points from the bench while the Pilots got 17.
Senior F Seth Thomas (Kilgore, Texas) and junior G Jerrick Baines (Alexandria, La.) each scored 21 points to lead the Gents and were two of five players to score in double figures. Freshman G Quentin Beverly (Katy, Texas) scored 12 and senior G/F Willie Davis (Bronx, New York), and junior G Chrys Jackson (North Las Vegas, Nev.) each scored 11.
Thomas played 33 minutes and grabbed four rebounds with four steals, two assists, and was a perfect 4-4 from the free-throw line. He made 7-13 shots overall and nailed three treys. Baines played 34 minutes and was 7-11 from the floor2-3 from beyond the arc, and grabbed five rebounds. He hit a pair of 3-pointers and added two assists and a steal.
Beverly made 4-9 shots in his 28 minutes and was 3-3 from beyond the arc with a pair of assists. Davis and Jackson each came off the bench to combine for 22 of Centenary's 26 bench points. Davis played 25 minutes and grabbed two rebounds and blocked two shots. He was 3-5 overall and 2-2 from the line. All three of his made baskets were 3-pointers. Jackson played just 12 minutes but made the most of it as he was 4-5 overall, 1-1 from beyond the arc, 2-3 from the free-throw line and grabbed one rebound.
Senior G Ralph Johnson (White Castle, La.), Senior F Joseph Wiggins (Bossier City, La.), and freshman G Cameron Walker (Bossier City, La.) each scored two points. Four Pilots scored in double digits led by a game-high 29 points from Calvin Carpenter.
The Gents will open their regular season at home versus Arlington Baptist University on Tuesday, Nov. 8 at 7 p.m. Centenary is scheduled to play 14 home games, nine road games, and two neutral-site contests. The Gents will play one more exhibition contest - Monday, Nov. 7 at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette (7 p.m.).
Centenary will play its first regular-season road game at East Texas Baptist University on Saturday, Nov. 12 (5 p.m.) in Marshall, Texas and then come home to face Louisiana Christian University on Wednesday, Nov. 16 at 7 p.m. The Gents will then play a pair of games in the Millsaps Tournament in Jackson, Miss. on Nov. 19-20, break for Thanksgiving, and then face Texas College at home on Saturday, Nov. 26 at 3 p.m.
The Gents will open conference play at home on Friday, Dec. 2 versus Trinity (7:30 p.m.), then face Schreiner on Sunday, Dec. 4 at 3 p.m., and then play two-straight non-conference home contests – Tuesday, Dec. 6 versus Millsaps (7:30 p.m.) and Belhaven University on Friday, Dec. 9 (7 p.m.).
The Gents finished last season at 13-13 overall and 7-9 in Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference play under head coach Chris Dorsey. Centenary has now finished .500 or better in all five seasons under Dorsey and made its ninth-straight appearance in the SCAC Tournament. The Maroon and White went 9-3 at the Gold Dome, continuing their recent stellar play at home as they are 24-6 in their last 30 home games over the last three seasons.
The Gents have established themselves as one of the most successful programs in the conference under Dorsey, winning 45 conference games in the last five seasons and its 38 wins from 2017-21 season led the conference in that span. The Gents are now an impressive 25-13 in their last 38 conference games dating back to Jan. 25, 2020. Centenary has made four trips to the SCAC championship game under Dorsey, and also have two semifinal appearances
Dorsey is 67-51 in his five seasons at the helm including an impressive 46-28 mark in SCAC play. The Gents have won 13 or more games in a season four times in Dorsey's tenure and eight or more conference games three times. He led the Gents to their best season in the division III era and one of the most successful seasons in program history in 2019-20 as the Maroon and White won their first SCAC Tournament title to earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history, losing a heartbreaker, 83-81, at UT-Dallas.
The 2023 SCAC Championship is set for Feb. 24-26 in San Antonio and hosted by Trinity University.
See the Gents' complete season schedule here: https://www.gocentenary.com/sports/mbkb/2022-23/schedule
Admission is FREE to all Centenary home athletic contests. Live stats and live video stream are available for all Centenary home contests.
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