LIONS EXIT GSC TOURNEY WITH 73-58 LOSS TO OUACHITA BAPTIST (BOX SCORE)

TUPELO, Miss., - Three players scored in double-digits for Ouachita Baptist to lead the Tigers to a 73-58 victory over North Alabama in the opening round of the Gulf South Conference men’s basketball tournament Wednesday night at the BancorpSouth Center in Tupelo, Miss.

The Lions shot 34 percent from the field and hit only 4 of 20 three-point shots, leading to their second-lowest point total of the season. UNA also had 18 turnovers, which led to 14 points for the Tigers.

“I thought that Ouachita Baptist did a tremendous job defending us tonight,” said UNA head coach Bobby Champagne. “They did a lot of things with their pressure defense that took us out of our offensive rhythm. They are playing really well right now and have a good chance to advance deep in this tournament.”

OBU (19-9) pushed a 39-26 half-time lead to 19 points in the opening minutes of the second half and held off a late rally by the Lions to advance to play Montevallo Friday night in the second round.

A jumper by Kevin White made the score 53-34 with 12:43 remaining in the game. The Lions, however, used a 14-2 run over the next five minutes to cut the lead to seven. A basket and free throw by Casey Holt at the 7:09 mark completed a three-point play and made the score 55-48.

UNA, however, would get no closer. The Tigers closed the game on an 18-10 run. Pete Lowe led the Lions with 12 points on the night. Holt also reached double figures with 11 points for the game.

White’s 20 points led OBU, while David Mercer added 18 on the night. Rylan Coulter tossed in 11 points to round out the Tigers’ top scorers.