DANVILLE, Va. — Averett University men's basketball fought off Southern Virginia University 62-60 for a non-conference win Saturday afternoon in the Grant Center, giving he Cougars their third win in a row.

Averett (3-1), which trailed most of the second half, rallied from a seven-point deficit with under 12 minutes to play by outscoring Southern Virginia (2-2) 19-7 over the next eight minutes to take a 60-55 lead with 3:59 to play.

The Knights held Averett to just one field goal the rest of the way, but Averett's defense was just as stout. Southern Virginia's final field goal game at the 2:18 mark to get the Knights within 62-59.

Averett missed a jumper, giving the ball back to Southern Virginia, which called a timeout with 9.9 seconds remaining down three points. The Cougars got the rebound but committed a foul away from the ball, putting Southern Virginia's Koa Baker on the line with 0.7 seconds remaining for two free throws because the Knights were in the double bonus. Baker hit the first one, and the Knights called timeout to set up a play to miss the second free throw on purpose. Senior Bryson McLaughlin corralled the missed foul shot as time expired to preserve the Averett win over their former USA South Conference foe.

Averett fell behind early but got a nice boost from junior Jamael Carter Jr. off the bench. Carter finished with a career-high 17 points to lead the Cougars, who took a 32-31 lead into halftime.

Junior Jason Sellars II also had a double-double for Averett, totaling 12 points and 13 rebounds to go with five blocks. McLaughlin also scored 12 points and grabbed eight boards.

Averett's defense held its fourth consecutive Division III opponent to under 41 percent shooting for the game while outrebounding the Knights 39-33 and making nine blocks.

Averett returns to action on Tuesday with a road matchup against William Peace University.
 
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