GREENSBORO, N.C.— Averett University men's basketball held off a Pride run in the second half to put away Greensboro College 74-59 in Saturday's non-conference matchup.
The Cougars' double-digit cushion that Averett (4-0) had built in the first half slowly disappeared early in the second period as Greensboro (0-7) chipped away to get within 51-45 with 10:26 remaining. That's when freshman
Mason Mitchell went on a tear to end any thought of a Pride comeback. Mitchell made a corner 3-pointer at the 9:14 mark, and after the Cougars' defense made a steal at the other end, Mitchell hit another highly contested 3-pointer to extend the lead back to 12 points. Averett's defense got a block on Greensboro's next possession, and Mitchell again drilled a big shot as he came off a curl to push the Averett lead to 59-45 with 7:52 to go.
Averett kept Greensboro at a distance the rest of the way, and Mitchell delivered what was likely the final dagger, draining another contested 3 while being fouled to make it 68-47 with 3:43 to play. The Cougars led by as many as 21 late in the second half before the Pride made some baskets late to get it to a 15-point margin.
Mitchell finished a career-high 19 points, including 5-for-6 shooting from beyond the arc. Averett also got a career-high 13 points and four assists from senior
Clay Hodges to go with sophomore Jamison Grave's 16 points to power Averett to its fourth win to open the season, which already ties last season's overall wins total.
For the second game in a row, Averett never trailed as the Cougars used good defense to go with good offense to build a 22-8 lead midway through first half. Mitchell nailed a highly contested 3-pointer at buzzer to end half with Averett up 39-23.
Averett returns home Monday for its biggest test yet against No. 5 Christopher Newport University at 7 p.m. in the Grant Center.
