Shreveport - The Centenary men's basketball team extended its winning streak to seven with a dominating 75-51 victory over the Belhaven University Blazers on Friday evening in a non-conference contest at the Gold Dome.
The Gents (8-2) are riding their longest winning streak since winning 10 games in a row from Jan. 25-March 1, 2020 during their Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference championship season. Centenary, winners of 29 of its last 36 home games overall, most recently won eight games in a row during the 2014-15 season. Belhaven dropped to 3-3 on the season and Centenary now leads the all-time series, 3-0.
Centenary head coach Chris Dorsey recorded his 75th career Centenary win on Friday in his sixth season at the helm as he is now 75-53 overall. The Gents are 6-1 at home this season as Friday's win followed a 65-54 victory over the Millsaps College Majors on Tuesday.
The Gents came out clicking on offense in the first half, shooting 42.9 % (15-35) overall from the floor, and were 10-22 from beyond the arc for 45.5 % to take a 42-17 lead at halftime. Centenary forced 13 turnovers in the first half and held the Blazers to just 23.8 % shooting overall as the visitors made just five total baskets in 21 attempts and were 1-9 from 3-point range for 11.1 %. Belhaven was better in the second half, but still only made 10 shots in 29 attempts for 34.5 % and made just 2-11 attempts from 3-point range for 18.2 %. Belhaven edged the Gents 34-33 in the second half but the 25-point halftime deficit was too much to overcome.
The Gents continued their hot shooting after halftime as they finished 45.8 % (11-24) from the field and made three more treys in nine attempts. Centenary finished 44.1 % (26-59) for the game from the floor, 41.9 % (13-31) from 3-point range, and 55.6 % (10-18) from the free throw line. The 13 treys tied Centenary's single-game high after making 13 in its 101-64 season-opening victory over Arlington Baptist on Nov. 8. Belhaven was just 30 % (15-50) overall, 3-20 from beyond the arc for 15.0 %, and 18-28 from the free throw line for 64.3 %.
Belhaven outrebounded Centenary 50-36, with 33 coming on the defensive end and 17 on the offensive end. Centenary pulled down 28 defensive rebounds, as the Maroon and White were busy pulling down missed shots by the Blazers. The Gents turned Belhaven's 21 turnovers into 24 points while only turning the ball over a season-low six times, which the visitors only turned into four points. The Gents nearly matched the all-time Gold Dome record for fewest turnovers in a game, which was four versus Louisiana Tech on Feb. 3, 1986.
The Gents finished with a slight edge (24-20) in points in the paint, and as they have all season they benefited greatly from their strong bench which contributed 30 points to just five from Belhaven's. Centenary recorded 16 assists, nine steals, and five blocked shots while Belhaven finished with 11 assists, three steals, and blocked one shot. The Blazers had 10 second-chance points to the Gents' eight, and Centenary tallied eight fast break points while Belhaven did not have any.
Junior G Braeden Board (Rayne, La.) scored a game-high 18 points, matching his season high, and was one of three Gents in double figures. Two Belhaven players reached double figures as Judah Jordan had 13 and Martavin McWilliams had 12. Board was on fire as he finished a perfect 5-5 overall, all of which were from beyond the arc in 22 minutes. He tied the all-time school record for 3-point field goal percentage, tying Ronnie McCollum's effort on Jan. 15, 1998 versus Mercer. Board finished 3-4 at the free throw line with two steals, an assist, a rebound, and a blocked shot. Board has reached double figures five times this season.
Senior G Kile Mingo (Cypress, Texas) continued his impressive play as he came off the bench and scored 12 points in his 23 minutes of action, reaching double figures for the fourth time this season. He was 4-10 overall, 2-6 from beyond the arc, and 2-2 from the free throw line. He had four rebounds, three steals, two blocked shots, and one assist. Senior F Seth Thomas (Kilgore, Texas) added 11 points in 22 minutes on 3-9 shooting. He was 4-6 at the free throw line and hit one trey. He had five rebounds, three assists, and two steals. Thomas has now scored in double figures a team-high nine times this season and in five-straight games.
Senior G Jalen Behr (Athens, Ga.) and senior G Tykeem Singleton (Fort Worth, Texas) each scored eight points and freshman G Quentin Beverly (Katy, Texas) added six. Junior G Chrys Jackson (North Las Vegas, Nev.) and freshman G Cameron Walker (Bossier City, La.) each scored three, and junior G Jerrick Baines (Alexandria, La.) and senior F Joseph Wiggins (Bossier City, La.) each chipped in two points. Junior G/F Dylan Hooter (Mandeville, La.) also scored two in his three minutes off the bench.
Behr played 20 minutes off the bench and was 3-7 overall and 2-4 from beyond the arc with three rebounds and two assists. Singleton grabbed three rebounds with an assist and a blocked shot in 27 minutes on 3-5 shooting and hit two treys. Beverly was 3-7 in 13 minutes with an assist, a rebound, and a steal. Jackson added a pair of assists with his three points in 13 minutes. Walker had three rebounds an assist along with his three points in 11 minutes. Baines had three rebounds and an assist in 10 minutes, and Wiggins had four rebounds in his 11 minutes of action.
Freshman G Dalyn Davis (Natchitoches, La.), senior F Xavier Johnson (Baker, La.), junior G Coby Harris (Lafayette, La.), and senior G Ralph Johnson (White Castle, La.) all played but did not score. Xavier Johnson had an assist, a blocked shot, and a rebound, and Ralph Johnson tallied two assists and a steal.
Jordan Marshall grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds and added seven points as he just missed a double-double for the Blazers. Donovan Givens scored eight, Damien Wheaton had six, Charleston Wallace had three, and Neal Terry added two.
The Gents jumped out to a 10-2 lead with 15:57 remaining in the first half after Board's third trey in the first four minutes. The Blazers cut it to two multiple times early in the half but Centenary's offense continued to roll for the remainder of the half as they led comfortably by double digits for the majority of the time and pushed the lead to 39-15 at the 2:01 mark. A jumper by Thomas gave the Gents a 57-32 lead with 11:35 remaining in the second half and Centenary maintained a 20+ point advantage for the rest of the half to cruise to the win.
The Gents are now off for two weeks for final exams and the holiday break and will return to action and conference play on Friday, Dec. 16 at Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas in a game set for 7:30 p.m. Centenary then faces Texas Lutheran University the following day at 4 p.m. in Seguin, Texas.
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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