Marshall, Texas- The Centenary men's basketball team dropped its first game of the season on Saturday, falling 95-76 to the East Texas Baptist University Tigers in a non-conference contest at Ornleas Gym.
The Gents (1-1) opened the regular season with a dominating 101-64 win over the Arlington Baptist University Patriots on Tuesday evening in a non-conference contest at home while Saturday was the season opener for the Tigers (1-0).
Both teams shot the ball well as Centenary went 46.3 % (25-54) from the floor for the game while ETBU finished 52.2 % (36-69). The Tigers finished with a slight edge (39-35) in rebounding and had five players finish in double figures while three Gents did so. Centenary finished with 11 steals, 10 assists, and three blocked shots while ETBU tallied 27 assists, 12 steals, and five blocks.
Freshman G Quentin Beverly (Katy, Texas) led the Gents with a season-high 15 points, reaching double figures for the second time this season after scoring 12 against crosstown foe LSU-Shreveport on Nov. 1 in a non-conference exhibition contest. Beverly was 6-9 shooting overall in 26 minutes, 3-6 from the free throw line and had three assists, three rebounds, and three steals.
Senior F Seth Thomas (Kilgore, Texas) was just behind him with 14 points in 26 minutes and grabbed 10 rebounds for a double-double. He was a perfect 5-5 from the floor and 4-5 at the free throw line with three assists and a blocked shot. Thomas has gotten off to an impressive start this season as he is averaging 19 PPG while shooting a sizzling 76.2 % overall from the floor. He is averaging 7.5 rebounds/game, 3.5 assists/game and is shooting 83.3 % from the free throw line and 50 % from beyond the arc.
Senior G Tykeem Singleton (Fort Worth, Texas) came off the bench and scored 10 points in just 13 minutes as he was 3-7 from the floor with one assist and one rebound. Senior G Jalen Behr (Athens, Ga.) added eight points in eight minutes as he made 3-5 shots overall and hit 2-4 attempts from beyond the arc. Junior G Jerrick Baines (Alexandria, La.) scored six points in 28 minutes as he was 4-6 from the free throw line and had three rebounds, three steals, and an assist.
Senior F Joseph Wiggins (Bossier City, La.) scored five points with four rebounds, and a steal in 15 minutes on 2-3 shooting overall and went 1-1 from the line. Junior G Chrys Jackson (North Las Vegas, Nev.) and senior G/F Willie Davis (Bronx, New York) each scored four and Junior G Braeden Board (Rayne, La.) and freshman G Cameron Walker (Bossier City, La.) each scored three points. Senior F Xavier Johnson (Baker, La.) and senior G Kile Mingo (Cypress, Texas) each added two points.
Centenary went 22-32 (68.8 %) from the free throw line and ETBU finished just 9-16 (56.3 %) but made up for it by shooting 46.7 % (14-30) from beyond the arc while the Gents struggled, shooting 23.5 % (4-17). Darry Moore scored a game-high 21 points to lead the way for the Tigers. Jaden Conner came off the bench and scored 17 points and Kurt Labeaud added 12 in a reserve role. Aaron Gregg scored 11 points and had a game-high 11 assists in 26 minutes with five rebounds and a steal. Jayden Williams also reached double figures, scoring 10 in 26 minutes with two steals, an assist, and a rebound.
Both teams' benches were big contributors as ETBU's delivered 43 points and Centenary's scored 33. The Gents scored 34 points in the paint while the Tigers scored 36, Centenary scored 11 fast break points, ETBU nine, and the Gents scored 19 second-chance points to the Tigers' 17. ETBU scored 30 points off 25 Centenary turnovers and the Gents scored 24 points off 21 ETBU TO's.
The Gents held an 18-14 lead on a free throw by Thomas at the 11:30 mark of the first half but then the Tigers went on a 10-0 run to take a 24-18 advantage with 8:55 remaining. A free throw by Wiggins with 6:44 left gave the Gents a 26-25 lead but ETBU went on a run and a 3-point basket by Conner put ETBU back ahead 37-27 with 4:11 remaining in the first half. A free throw by Baines with 2:19 left cut the Gents' deficit to five (38-33) but a 15-4 run to close the half gave the Tigers a comfortable 53-37 halftime lead. The Tigers built a lead as large as 35 (80-45) with 10:34 remaining and maintained a double-digit advantage the rest of the half to secure the win.
Centenary is back home next week as the Gents welcome the Louisiana Christian University Wildcats to the Gold Dome on Wednesday for a non-conference game set for a 7 p.m. tip.
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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