BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – The sixth-seeded Tigers took on the third-seeded Freed-Hardeman University Lions Sunday night for the Mid-South Conference Tournament Quarterfinals. Despite entering the second half with the lead, Campbellsville fell to reigning national champion Freed-Hardeman, 68-63. 

Cobe Penny began the game with a solo three-point basket and two-for-two free throws. The Lions retaliated, tying the score. Penny did not falter to strike back with a jumper to reclaim the Tigers' lead, but Freed-Hardeman scored a layup in return, tying the score again. With another basket from beyond the arc for Campbellsville, KJ Banks put the Tigers ahead again. The Lions did not stand down, scoring to remain close to the advantage. However, Campbellsville preserved their lead with relentless offensive plays. Freed-Hardeman's turnovers aided the Tigers in keeping control of the ball. Campbellsville's momentum only strengthened as Jay Milburn and Dalton Kramer's shots in the paint propelled the Tigers forward. At the same time, the Lions struggled to make it to double digits on the scoreboard. With only five minutes left in the first half, Freed-Hardeman elevated their attacks, catching up with Campbellsville's lead. The Lions tied the score with a layup and stole the lead with a dunk, keeping the Tigers one possession behind. Ra Briggs and Penny scored back-to-back baskets with a few minutes left to reclaim Campbellsville's advantage. At the half, the Tigers led by one possession, 26-24.

Both teams came into the second half with strong momentum to seek the advantage, exchanging back-to-back threes in the half's opening. Freed-Hardeman collected four back-to-back baskets in the next few minutes of play, earning their largest lead of the match, seven points ahead of Campbellsville. Keaston Brown and Kramer's action from beyond the arc kept the Tigers close to the upper hand. The Lions increased their lead with avid baskets in the paint and multiple perfect free-throw opportunities at the charity stripe.  Campbellsville's defensive rebounding continued to bring the ball back to the Tigers as they attempted to steal the lead with less than five minutes left in the game. Briggs and Penny elevated their scoring attempts, narrowing the gap on the scoreboard to a one-point deficit, with several three-point buckets assisted by Kam Vick. The Lions added a few points to their upper hand, but the Tigers did not halt their attempts to surpass them. Vick's charges did not stop as the time on the clock expired; with a free throw and another layup, he brought the Tigers within one point from the lead with less than 15 seconds left before the final buzzer. Both teams faced opportunities at the charity stripe as the game slowed down in a fundamental and decisive battle for the victory. Freed-Hardeman scored another layup in the last two seconds, closing the game and defeating Campbellsville 68-63.            

• Two Tigers reached double digits in tonight's contest: Penny with 18 points and Briggs with 12. Penny also led with six field goals, four three-pointers, and eight rebounds. Vick led with four assists, and Milburn with three blocks. 
• Despite falling to the Freed-Hardeman, Campbellsville ended ahead in points-off-turnovers (8-5), bench points (25-22), blocks (8-4), and three-point percentage (39.3%-23.5%).
• This year's loss against the Lions is the Tigers' third consecutive season falling out from the Mid-South Conference Tournament after a defeat against Freed-Hardeman. Also, tonight's loss was the Tigers' tenth consecutive defeat against the Lions; Campbellsville has not won a game against Freed-Hardeman since 2021.