DANVILLE, Va. — Averett University men's basketball dropped its first game in 2020 in an 84-66 loss to conference foe LaGrange College on Saturday at the Grant Center. The Panthers overcame a first-half deficit to top the Cougars.

It was a tale of two halves for Averett (6-6, 2-2 USA South), which opened the game with a 16-2 run in the first four minutes. Behind 11 first-half points from junior Montre' Cash and strong efforts on the boards by senior Timothy Henry and sophomore Isaiah Jones, the Cougars took a 41-30 lead into halftime.

Although Averett's defense held LaGrange to only 31 percent shooting from the floor in the first half, the Panthers opened the second half by chipping the Cougars' lead down to one point multiple times over the first seven minutes of the period. LaGrange eventually tied it, 49-49, on a Henry Blair 3-pointer and then took a 52-49 lead on Julian Cameron's 3-pointer on the next possession with 12:28 to play. Averett remained within striking distance for several minutes until LaGrange pulled away late.

Henry led Averett with a double-double of 19 points and 10 rebounds, while Cash finished with 14 points and senior Vince Contreras totaled 10 points. Jones ended up with a team-high 13 rebounds, seven points and three blocks.

Cameron, the USA South's leading scorer, was held to only six points in the first 20 minutes before finishing with a team-high 23 points to lead four Panthers in double-digit scoring. LaGrange shot 66.7 percent from the floor in the second half to aid its comeback.

Averett begins a four-game stretch on the road starting Tuesday at Pfeiffer University.