SHERMAN, Texas - A close first half with five ties saw the Gents go scoreless over the final 3:18, while the 'Roos scored seven unanswered and never led by less than five the rest of the way as Centenary (5-6, 0-1 Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference) lost its conference opener to Austin College (4-6, 1-0 SCAC) 82-73 Friday night, December 30.
Down 15-9, the Gents scored nine unanswered to take their only lead of the game. Senior James Sapp made a jumper while junior KJ Boyd and sophomore Regis Johnson made a pair of free throws. The game stood tied for the third time in the game with 9:31 left in the first half.
Junior Travion Kirkendoll added the hoop and harm for the first Centenary lead of the game. Austin Freet stopped the spurt with a layup for the 'Roos, but freshman Cedric Harris hit a three. The Gents led 21-17 with eight minutes left in the first half, their largest lead of the game.
Centenary was outshot 43.3 percent (26-for-60) to 30.3 percent (20-for-66). The home team also took advantage of a 11-6 edge in three-pointers made. However, Centenary cut the game to single digits late in the second half thanks to a 27-19 edge in free throws made.
Kirkendoll led Centenary individually with 21 points, while Sapp added 11 points and 10 rebounds.
With Austin College leading by one with just a little more than 2:30 left in the first half, Jeremy Swisher grabbed the defensive board and made a fastbreak layup. Swisher then made a pair from the line and Andres Rivera drained a three to give the home team a 39-31 lead at the break.
Swisher led a quartet of 'Roos with double-digit points, finishing with 22. Austin Wells added 12 points, while Freet and JP Frieder chipped in 10.
Down 72-53, the Gents scored 10 unanswered to cut the deficit to single-digits with 2:30 left. Sapp made a pair from the line and Harris hit back-to-back triples. Sapp ended the run with a pair of free throws.
Sapp connected on 7-of-8 free throw attempts in the game, while Kirkendoll was perfect on all seven attempts.
Centenary cut the deficit to six with 30 seconds left, but Austin College connected on 8-for-11 from the charity stripe in the final 2:12 of the contest to seal the win.
The Gents open up 2017 with their final non-conference tilt of the season when they host Hendrix Monday, January 2. Tip is set for 6 p.m. with free admission.
