San Antonio, Texas - The Centenary men's basketball team lost 92-73 to the Trinity University Tigers on Saturday afternoon in a Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference contest at the Ron & Genie Calgaard Gymnasium.
The Gents (10-10, 5-7 SCAC) lost at Schreiner 71-57 on Friday as the Maroon and White have lost three-straight games. Trinity improved to 17-3 overall and 9-2 in conference play. The Tigers avenged an earlier 87-78 loss to the Gents back on Dec. 19 at the Gold Dome in a game that Centenary led by 18 points late in the second half.
Centenary shot 39.1 % (25-64) from the floor for the game on Saturday and were solid from beyond the arc, making 13-30 for 43.3 %. The Gents, though, struggled from the free throw line as they went just 10-21 for 47.6 %. Trinity shot a sizzling 57.1 % (32-56) overall, 45.5 % (10-22) from 3-point range, and were also solid at the line (75 % (18-24). The Tigers won the rebounding battle 44-29 and had four players finish in double figures.
The Gents had three players score in double figures, led by 19 from senior F Jarrell Taylor (Leesville, La.). Senior G Kile Mingo (Cypress, Texas) scored a season-high 18 and reached double figures for the sixth time this season, second-straight game, and fifth time in conference play. Fellow senior G AJ Hall (Thibodaux, La.) added 12 in 14 minutes off the bench as he was 4-10 overall, 2-4 from beyond the arc and grabbed five rebounds. He also went 2-4 from the free throw line and had an assist and a steal. Hall scored in double figures for the 11th time this season and ninth time in conference play.
Taylor, who has now also scored in double figures 11 times, scored 19 points for the third time this season as all three occasions have come in conference play. His season high is 24 points at Millsaps in November. Taylor played 27 minutes, grabbed five rebounds, and was 7-14 from the floor, 3-6 from beyond the arc, and 2-3 from the free throw line. Mingo played 34 minutes and was 6-11 overall and nailed five 3-pointers in nine attempts. He was 1-2 from the free throw line and added an assist and a steal. The five treys are a single-game high this season for Mingo a marked the fifth this season that he has hit at least three in a game.
Junior G Jalen Behr (Athens, Ga.) scored seven points and grabbed four rebounds in 25 minutes with two steals, an assist, and a blocked shot. He was 3-9 from the field and made one 3-pointer. Junior F Seth Thomas (Kilgore, Texas) had a solid all-around game with six points, six rebounds, three assists, and a steal in 26 minutes. He was 2-7 overall, 1-4 from the free throw line, and made one trey. Junior G Ralph Johnson (White Castle, La.) played 21 minutes and was 3-9 overall and one trey. He scored five points and pulled down four rebounds with two steals, an assist, and blocked a shot.
Junior F Joseph Wiggins (Bossier City, La.) scored three with one rebound, one assist, and one steal in 22 minutes. Senior G Tevin Baker (Port Arthur, Texas) played 18 minutes off the bench and scored two points and dished out a pair of assists with one steal. Sophomore G Braeden Board (Rayne, La.) grabbed three rebounds and scored a point in 10 minutes with a blocked shot and a steal. Centenary finished the day with 12 assists, eight steals, and two blocked shots. Trinity had 14 assists, three steals, and blocked one shot. The Gents turned the ball over 12 times and forced 18 Tigers' turnovers.
Enzo Sechi scored a game-high 21 points to lead the Tigers, AJ Clark posted a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds, and Tanner Brown and Jacob Harvey each scored 12. Clark also had six assists and a steal in his 32 minutes and was 2-2 from beyond the arc and 6-7 overall. Brown also recorded a double-double with 10 rebounds.
Trinity led 43-35 at the half and outscored the Gents 47-38 in the second half. The Tigers finished with a decisive advantage in points in the paint (42-14) and held a slight edge in second-chance points (14-10). Centenary's bench scored 34 points and the Tigers received 32 off of theirs. Trinity scored nine points off of Centenary's 12 turnovers and the Gents scored only seven off of Trinity's 18 giveaways. Trinity scored 10 fast break points while the Gents scored three.
The Tigers maintained their double-digit halftime lead for the majority of the second half, but a trio of 3-point baskets in a span of just over two minutes made it a 66-64 game with 7:16 left. Hall hit two and Taylor hit one as the Gents capped a 24-11 run after falling behind 55-40 at the 16:19 mark. Thomas connected for his only 3-pointer of the day at the 5:42 mark to tie the game at 68-68 and a layup by Taylor put the Gents ahead 70-69 with 5:07 left but the Tigers regained command of the game and finished on a 23-3 run to seal the win.
Centenary returns home next weekend for its final two home games of the regular season versus Colorado College (Feb. 11) and St. Thomas (Feb. 13).
A link to the Gents' complete 2021-22 schedule can be found here: https://www.gocentenary.com/sports/mbkb/2021-22/schedule
Admission is FREE to all Centenary home athletic contests but be advised of current COVID-19 protocols for fans. Updated COVID-19 information is now available via www.GoCentenary.com.
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