Lynchburg, Va. -- The University of Lynchburg men's basketball team beat Averett 77-58 on Saturday afternoon.
The Hornets honored their graduating class of 2024 and graduate student Cameron O'Conner before the game. One of those seniors, Matt Johnson, earned his first career start and scored the opening basket for the Hornets. He sank a 3-pointer, grabbed two boards, and made another bucket during the opening minutes of the game.
The Hornets were up by as many as eight points during the first half on several occasions, but their last lead that size came with 5:31 to play after a Jonathan Foust jumper. Foust finished the game with four points and five rebounds. On a day where the Hornets posted four double-digit scorers, Jordan Parham, another senior, led the way with 14. Piercen Young finished with 13, and Kavon James and Jayson Easton both contributed 12.
But before the Hornets could get all those players into double-figures, the Cougars mounted a comeback and only trailed by two at half.
In the second half, the Cougars completed their comeback and set up the Hornets to have to make a comeback of their own. Trailing by four with 8:52 left in the game, Lynchburg scored 20 unanswered points to close out the game. As Lynchburg was holding the Cougars scoreless for the remainder of the contest, the Hornets saw several players hit some big-time shots. Easton started the run with a pair of 3s, Foust scored on an alley-oop off the glass from Easton, and James closed out the game with a one-hand slam in transition off a steal from Miles Taylor. The 23-point run gave Lynchburg its first win in eight games.
The Hornets (11-14, 6-10 ODAC) play Shenandoah on Monday, Feb. 19. at 7 p.m. in Winchester, Va. Lynchburg eanred the No. 9 seed in the playoffs, and Shenandoah finished the year as the No. 8 seed.
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