Shreveport – The Centenary men's basketball team fell to the LSUS Pilots 86-69 on Thursday night in an exhibition contest in a matchup of two schools located just a few miles apart and dubbed the "Kings Highway Clash" at the Gold Dome.
The Pilots (2-2) led 49-27 at halftime and had three players in double figures for the game, led by 24 points from senior G Jeff Boyd. Centenary, which opened its season with an 87-77 victory over the Arlington Baptist University Patriots in a non-conference contest on Tuesday at home, had a pair of players reach double figures led by 19 from junior F Seth Thomas (Kilgore, Texas).
The Gents and Pilots met for the sixth time but for the first time in the Gold Dome since Centenary recorded an 88-84 victory on Nov. 19, 2013 in its season opener. The Pilots have now won two in a tow in the series after a home win during the 2019-20 season.
Senior F Jarrell Taylor (Leesville, La.) joined Thomas in double figures with 15 off the bench in 25 minutes. He scored 17 in his Gents' debut on Tuesday. Taylor shot 5-11 from the floor on Thursday night, making 3-6 of his three-point attempts and grabbed four rebounds. Thomas was 8-18 from the floor in 29 minutes, connected on a pair of treys, and had three rebounds, two steals, and an assist.
Junior G Ralph Johnson (New Iberia, La.) and senior G Kile Mingo (Cypress, Texas) each scored nine points on Thursday after doing so in Tuesday's season opener. Mingo went 3-6 from beyond the arc and added three rebounds, a pair of steals, and an assist in 23 minutes while Johnson played 32 minutes and grabbed two rebounds with a steal. Sophomore G Braeden Board (Rayne, La.) scored six points as he was a perfect 6-6 from the free-throw line in 25 minutes. He had four rebounds, four steals, an assist, and a block.
Junior G Jalen Behr (Athens, Ga.), senior G AJ Hall (Thibodaux, La.), and senior G Tevin Baker (Port Arthur, Texas) combined for 11 points off the bench with six rebounds, two steals, and an assist. Behr grabbed five rebounds, three coming on the defensive end, in 13 minutes of action.
The Gents shot 34.8 % (23-66) for the game while the Pilots finished at 58.9 % (33-56). Centenary made nine three-pointers and were impressive from the free-throw line, making 14-17 attempts. The Maroon and White had 12 steals, five assists, and a pair of blocks.
LSUS went 13-24 (52.4%) from three-point range and outrebounded the Gents, 41-27. The Pilots recorded 17 assists on their 33 made baskets and had six steals and a pair of blocks. Centenary forced 23 LSUS turnovers while the Gents committed just 12.
Centenary will now hit the road for four-straight games as the Gents will face Louisiana Christian University (formerly Louisiana College) in Pineville on Nov. 16 and then head to Jackson, Miss. to compete in the Millsaps Tournament Nov. 20-21 and finish up the road trip at Mississippi University for Women on Nov. 23 in Columbus, Miss.
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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