Shreveport - The Centenary men's basketball team opened its 2022-23 regular season with a dominating 101-64 disposal of the Arlington Baptist University Patriots on Tuesday evening in a non-conference contest at the Gold Dome.
The Gents (1-0) defeated Arlington Baptist for the second season opener in a row after recording an 87-77 win on Nov. 9, 2021 at home. The Patriots fell to 0-1 with Tuesday's loss.
Centenary scored 100 points for the first time since blasting Southwestern 105-69 in January of last season. The Gents topped 100 points in a game for the third time in head coach Chris Dorsey's tenure and Centenary has won 10 of its last 13 home games and the Maroon and White are an impressive 25-6 in their last 31 home games dating back to the 2019-20 season.
The Gents started hot, shooting a sizzling 68.4 % (26-38) in the first half to take a comfortable 59-32 lead at the half. Centenary then shot 37.2 % (16-43) in the second half to cruise to the 37-point win. The Gents, who outscored the Patriots by 10 (42-32) in the second half, shot 51.9 % (42-81) for the game. Arlington Baptist shot 33.3 % (19-57) for the game.
Centenary was solid from beyond the arc, making 13-31 attempts for 41.9 % while Arlington Baptist was also successful from deep, making 6-15 for 40 %. The Patriots went to the free throw line often, making 20-28 for 71.4 % while the Gents only went to the line eight time and made four for 50 %. Centenary outrebounded Arlington Baptist 49-41 and had five players reach double figures.
Senior F Seth Thomas (Kilgore, Texas) led the Gents on offense with 24 points, one shy of his career high, as he was 11-16 from the floor, 1-2 from 3-point range, and 1-1 at the free throw line. He grabbed five rebounds and added four assists and a blocked shot in 27 minutes. Freshman G Cameron Walker (Bossier City, La.) scored 14 in just 13 minutes off the bench, making 5-8 shots overall and was 3-4 from beyond the arc. He added three rebounds and two steals.
Junior G Chrys Jackson (North Las Vegas, Nev.) also came off the bench and scored 13 points in 17 solid minutes. He, like Walker, was also 5-8 overall and 3-4 from beyond the arc. Jackson grabbed four rebounds, had three assists, and a pair of steals. Junior G Jerrick Baines (Alexandria, La.) started and scored 12 in his 26 minutes, making 5-9 overall shots and hit a pair of treys. He grabbed a team-high seven rebounds and dished out a game-high six assists along with four steals.
Senior G Kile Mingo (Cypress, Texas) scored 10 in 15 minutes off the bench as he hit a pair of treys and was 4-9 overall with three rebounds, two assists, and a steal. Senior G Tykeem Singleton (Fort Worth, Texas) and freshman G Quentin Beverly (Katy, Texas) each scored five points while Junior G Braeden Board (Rayne, La.) and senior F Joseph Wiggins (Bossier City, La.) each chipped in four. senior F Xavier Johnson (Baker, La.) scored three and junior G Coby Harris (Lafayette, La.), senior G/F Willie Davis (Bronx, New York), and freshman G Dalyn Davis (Natchitoches, La.) each scored two. Junior G/F Dylan Hooter (Mandeville, La.) scored one and grabbed three rebounds in eight minutes off the bench.
Beverly grabbed one rebound and had one assist, Board pulled down four rebounds with one block, and Wiggins had three rebounds. Johnson had three rebounds and two assists, Harris grabbed two rebounds, Wille Davis had one assist and one rebound, and Dalyn Davis had two rebounds.
Daylen Minor led all scorers with 27 points on 7-17 shooting overall and nailed 5-7 from beyond the arc as one of three Patriots in double figures. Minor played 33 minutes and grabbed nine rebounds. Da'vione Stafford recorded a double-double with 13 points and a game-high 11 rebounds in 21 minutes. He was just 2-5 from the field but racked up at the line where he went 9-14. He added a pair of blocked shots and an assist. Maurice Walker scored 15 points in 30 minutes with five boards and a steal.
Next up for the Gents is a trip to Marshall, Texas on Saturday to face the ETBU Tigers in a non-conference contest set for 5 p.m. at Ornleas Gym. The series between the Tigers and Gents dates back to 1946 and has been dominated by the Gents as they have won 32 of 41 all-time meetings. The teams met last season in Marshall as the Tigers recorded a rare 75-60 win.
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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