CAMPBELLSVILLE, Ky.– The Campbellsville University men's basketball team returned to the Powell Athletic Center to host the UT Southern Firehawks Saturday afternoon. Climbing back from a marginal deficit all game, the Tigers dropped the contest 76-74 with an unsuccessful final opportunity.
In the early minutes of the contest, the Firehawks' defense pressured the Tigers. Campbellsville stagnated with 33% in field goals compared to UT Southern's 83.3%. Malachi De Sousa and Javaughn Smith found the Tigers' relief by decreasing their trail to two points. The Firehawks swiftly retaliated with an eight-point run interrupted by a layup from Zach Travis. As the Tigers trail by four points, their free throw percentage sat at 0%, with the Tigers missing all five chances. Although UT Southern's field goal percentage dropped, they still bested the Tigers with 58.6%, resulting in a 41-35 lead going into the half.
Campbellsville collected 22 points in the paint at the half, whereas the Firehawks acquired 16 points in the area. However, UT Southern's bench came into their favor as they amassed 20 bench points, while the Tigers tallied nine points from their own. De Sousa led his team with 13 points and five rebounds. Keaston Brown trailed closely with nine points and two rebounds.
The Tigers' discrepancy widened early in the second half as they turned over the ball twice within the first two and a half minutes of play. Campbellsville inched their way back to a four-point deficit, but the Firehawks put in big shots to shut down a consistent comeback. UT Southern's three-point percentage was 53.5% to Campbellsville's 38.5%. Deep into the second half, Malik Muhammad earned the Tigers their first lead since the first minute of play. Jordan Graham followed Muhammad's layup with a three-pointer, which increased their lead. UT Southern put the pressure on Campbellsville and they took back the lead with four minutes remaining. The Tigers missed more opportunities at the charity stripe and trailed by three points with five seconds left. Jace Wallace stepped up to the free throw and knocked down both shots. However, Campbellsville could not recover and dropped the contest 76-74.
As the competition concluded, both teams were nearly identical from the field (The Tigers' 51.8% to the Firehawks' 51.7%). UT Southern forced Campbellsville into 12 turnovers that UT Southern converted into 16 points. The Tigers continued to control the paint as the team collected 40 points compared to the Firehawks' 28 points in the category. De Sousa completed the game with 19 points and seven rebounds. Brown finalized 16 points and three rebounds. Muhammad amassed eight rebounds, and Wallace followed with six.
Campbellsville will hit the road as they head to Wilberforce University (Ohio) on Thursday, January 26th. The contest will begin at 7:30 p.m. ET and can be followed along on www.campbellsvilletigers.com.
