DANVILLE, Va. — Averett University men's basketball made a run to get within four points multiple times down the stretch, but No. 8 Guilford College escaped with a 52-46 Old Dominion Athletic Conference victory on Saturday in the Grant Center.
Down 37-25 in the second half, Averett (4-16, 2-10 ODAC) used a 10-2 spurt to pull within 39-35 with 7:43 remaining. Guilford (18-2. 9-2 ODAC), however, immediately answered with Tyler Dearman's three-point play to extend the Quakers' lead back to seven points. Averett stayed within striking distance, getting back within four on junior
Bryce Shaw's driving layup to cut Guilford's lead to 50-46 with 1:44 remaining. The Cougars' defense then forced a turnover at the other end, leading to a Quakers' timeout with 1:24 to play.
Averett got several defensive stops but couldn't draw any closer in the final minute as Guilford held on.
Senior
Jordan Lewis led the Cougars with 12 points, six rebounds and three assists. Shaw added 11 points, while senior
Jason Sellars II and freshman
Jamison Graves each had nine points. Freshman Nico Liberatore matched Lewis for the team lead with six boards.
Guilford was led by Tyler Dearman's 20 points.
Guilford inched ahead early and a 6-0 run midway through the first period helped the Quakers turn a five-point lead into a 22-11 advantage with 7:48 left in the opening half. Although Guilford won the battle on the glass 21-12 (10-4 on the offensive glass) in the first half, Averett allowed just seven second-chance points. The Cougars settled in and closed their deficit to 26-19 by halftime against the nationally ranked Quakers.
Averett hosts University of Mary Washington on Wednesday at 5 p.m.
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