VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Effective free throw shooting down the stretch lifted the Averett men's basketball team to a thrilling 76-72 victory over Baruch College on Friday night in the first game of the Virginia Wesleyan College Marlin Tip-Off Tournament at the Batten Center.
 
Senior Bradley Robinson sank a pair of crucial free throws with 8.7 seconds remaining to give Averett (2-0) a 75-72 lead. Baruch (2-2) had a chance to tie the game on its following possession. However, William Sixsmith's 3-point attempt with three seconds left fell short, giving Averett the ball one more time. On the ensuing possession, the Bearcats were forced to foul the Cougars, sending freshman Austin DeLucia to the line. DeLucia hit the back end of his two attempts, giving Averett a 76-72 lead, sealing the game for the Cougars with 0.4 seconds to play.
 
The whole game was a back-and-forth affair between the two sides that saw nine different lead changes. Baruch jumped out to a nine-point advantage with just over 10 minutes remaining in the first period. Averett, though, answered back with a 10-1 run over the course of five minutes to tie the score at 20-20. The first half ended with Averett trailing 32-31.
 
Neither team was able to open up the game in the second period. The Cougars took their first lead of the night when senior JaColby Hawkins hit a layup at the 14:26 mark to put Averett in front 43-42. The Cougars were able to create some space thanks to a pair of 3-pointers from DeLucia and Robinson that gave Averett its biggest lead of the night, 66-57, with four minutes left in the game.
 
The Bearcats, however, didn't quit. Baruch closed out the game on a 15-7 run to get within one at 73-72 with 11 seconds on the clock. Baruch's comeback hopes were dashed thanks to clutch free throw shooting down the stretch. 
 
DeLucia led the Cougars with a career-high 16 points, while Contreras chipped in with 14 points. Robinson added 11 points to go along with a team-high nine rebounds, and Hawkins and junior Charles Bryant scored eight in the victory. Seniors Trevor West and Carter Jones showed a big presence in the post with six and five rebounds, respectively.
 
Averett returns to the court Saturday in the championship of the Marlin Tip-Off Tournament against the winner of Friday night's Virginia Wesleyan/Milwaukee School of Engineering contest. Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m.