FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. – The Methodist College men’s basketball team jumped out to an early 27-9 lead and went on to defeat Averett University by a 79-63 final Tuesday at the Riddle Center.
With the Cougars (0-12, 0-3 USA South) trailing 10-6 early in the game, the Monarchs (6-7, 2-1 USA South) went on a 17-3 run to open an 18-point lead with 11:39 remaining in the opening half. Averett allowed only 13 points for Methodist for the remainder of the half, but 31 percent shooting in the stanza prevented the Cougars from getting any closer than 42-27 by the intermission.
The Monarchs led 46-30 with 18:02 showing on the game clock after an Arthur Hatch dunk. However, an Averett bucket by Joey Barksdale initiated a 14-6 run by the Cougars to draw within eight points. Matthew Jordan’s 3-pointer with 12:14 left in the game cut the Methodist lead to 52-44.
Averett continued to chip away at the deficit and trimmed it to 60-58 at the 7:13 mark on a trey by Barksdale. The Cougar momentum was short lived, as they went ice cold from the field. Averett hit only two of their last seven shots and watched the Monarch lead grow to 79-63 at the final buzzer.
Hatch led all scorers with 23 for Methodist. He was followed by Seth Thomas’ 13-point effort, while Eugene Grant added 12 for the Monarchs. Hatch also had a game-high 12 rebounds in the contest.
Jerrod Harris and Billy Gardner both scored 13 for the Cougars. Gardner also led the team with eight rebounds. Jermaine Coston and Barksdale each contributed 12 points for Averett, as Jordan added six.
Averett vs Methodist 1/20/04 5:30 p.m. at Riddle Center - Fayetteville, N.C. At Riddle Center - Fayetteville, N.C. METHODIST 79, AVERETT 63 AVERETT (0-12, 0-3) HARRIS, Jerrod 6-13 1-4 13; GARDNER, Billy 4-11 5-6 13; BARKSDALE, Joey 5-9 0-0 12; COSTON, Jermaine 5-16 0-0 12; JORDAN, Matthew 2-4 0-0 6; JOHNSON, Kashif 1-4 1-2 3; WILLIAMS, Sterling 0-3 2-2 2; BOOR, Andrew 0-1 2-2 2; WILLIAMS, Cory 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 23-62 11-16 63. METHODIST (6-7, 2-1) HATCH, Arthur 9-14 5-6 23; THOMAS, Seth 3-5 4-4 13; GRANT, Eugene 6-11 0-0 12; RADMANOVIC, Dragan 4-4 0-0 9; PORTER, Sam 3-8 3-4 9; LAMAR, Eddie 1-6 4-6 6; LITTLE, Ivan 1-5 3-5 5; LEE, Robert 1-1 0-0 2; SNIPES, Jordan 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 28-55 19-25 79. Averett....................... 27 36 - 63 Methodist..................... 42 37 - 79 3-point goals-Averett 6-16 (JORDAN, Matthew 2-3; BARKSDALE, Joey 2-4; COSTON, Jermaine 2-7; WILLIAMS, Sterling 0-1; HARRIS, Jerrod 0-1), Methodist 4-12 (THOMAS, Seth 3-5; RADMANOVIC, Dragan 1-1; LAMAR, Eddie 0-1; GRANT, Eugene 0-4; HATCH, Arthur 0-1). Fouled out--Averett-None, Methodist-None. Rebounds-Averett 36 (GARDNER, Billy 8), Methodist 36 (HATCH, Arthur 12). Assists-Averett 13 (JORDAN, Matthew 4), Methodist 23 (GRANT, Eugene 8). Total fouls-Averett 15, Methodist 14. A-286