HARRISONBURG, Va. — Averett University men's basketball missed a game-tying 3-point attempt in the final seconds as Eastern Mennonite University escaped with a 61-58 conference home win on Saturday. 

Averett (10-4, 3-2 ODAC) surged ahead in the second half but Eastern Mennonite (5-10, 2-4 ODAC) retook the lead late as the two teams battled down the stretch. Down 59-56 after the Royals scored with under 30 seconds remaining, the Cougars had a 3-pointer miss and EMU got the rebound. After two fouls put the Royals on the free throw line, EMU hit a pair to extend its lead to 61-56. Averett got last-second layup but it wasn't enough as time ran out. 

The loss ended Averett's win streak at three in a row and at six consecutive games against non-Division I opponents.

Sophomore Mason Mitchell got the Cougars off the a good start to the game, hitting a pair of 3-pointers as Averett took an initial 6-2 lead. But EMU quickly turned the tides by going on a 13-0 run to seize control. The Royals led by as many as 11 points — 27-16 at the 2:27 mark of the first half. However, Averett rallied in the final minutes to close the gap to 27-24 with an 8-0 run going into halftime. 

Averett made a 12-0 scoring run early in second put the Cougars ahead 38-33 with 13:48 to play. Averett held the lead until an EMU 3-pointer tied the game, 53-53, with 3:04 remaining, and after the Royals got a stop, they inched ahead 55-53 with a layup. 

Mitchell finished with a team-high 14 points, while redshirt sophomore Timayahs Bracey and sophomore Jalen Chambers each added 11 points. 

Averett travels to Guilford College on Wednesday for a conference battle.