Box Score


FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — Methodist University's Mark Jernigan's tip-in in the final seconds helped send the Averett Cougars to a heartbreaking 63-61 loss on Saturday afternoon.

Averett (2-20, 0-9 USA South) shined at the start, opening the game with a 20-5 lead over the Monarchs (8-13, 3-5 USA South). However, as the first half wound down, that large shrunk to 33-25 by halftime.

The Cougars' lead continued to fade away early in the second half, and midway through the period, it had dried up completely. Marc Slade gave Methodist its first lead, 45-44, with a fastbreak layup with 11:54 to play. The momentum continued to swing in the Monarchs' favor as they pushed their advantage to 61-54 with 3:44 remaining.

Averett, however, continued to fight. Layups by Victor Cortes and Paul Porter sliced Methodist's lead down to 61-58 with two minutes left, and Kenny Hart's 3-pointer tied the game with less than a minute remaining. After a failed 3-pointer by the Monarchs, the Cougars had a go-ahead layup blocked with about 14 seconds to play. Hart blocked a Methodist layup at the other end seconds later, but the Monarchs retained possession. After a Methodist timeout, Josh Hayed fired a errant 3-pointer that Jernigan tipped back in to put the Monarchs ahead. Averett's desperation 3-pointer at the buzzer missed and Methodist escaped with the win.

Marquis Scott and Justin Pierce, who were a big reason for Averett's great start in the first half, finished with 15 points and 13 points, respectively. Scott also added 13 rebounds. The Cougars also got 11 points from Cortes and 10 points and seven rebounds from Porter.

Methodist's Hayes led all scorers with 18 points.

Averett returns to action on Saturday at home against Christopher Newport University at 4 p.m.