Phoenix men survive strong comeback to nab first MSC victory

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Jan. 10—MCKENZIE — Cumberland’s men went on the road to open up Mid-South Conference action against the Bethel Wildcats and despite a 16-point comeback from BU, the Phoenix took them down 101-90 Thursday night.

The Phoenix and Wildcats dueled back and forth for the opening five minutes of the first half, as each team found their rhythm under the basket. Khi Wallace and Jalin Anglin both took steals coast to coast and put home powerful dunks, though the real star of the first half was Demarius Boyd.

The Wildcats saw many of their offensive sets broken down in the first half, giving way for the Phoenix’s run-and-gun offense to take off. All five starters for Cumberland played the opening 13 minutes of the game yet the Phoenix rode that lineup to a ten point lead at the first substitution break. Boyd went a smooth 3-of-5 from beyond the arc, while not missing another shot from the field or the charity stripe, leading the game with 17 points at the second media timeout.

A beautiful dime from Boyd to Keyshawn Robinson put the Phoenix up by their largest margin of the half, 14 points, and forced a Bethel timeout with exactly five minutes left on the clock. Khi Wallace responded with a block for CU the first possession out of the break and Nick Brunetti brought the ball down the floor and hit a pull-up three pointer. Tristan Conger nabbed a steal after that three and sent a dime to Wallace for yet another slam.

As the clock began to expire on the half it looked like it would be 56-41 in favor of the Phoenix, but Conger yet again put a beauty of a pass into the hands of Keyshawn Robinson who converted a 3-pointer with the help of a shooter’s roll. The 18-point lead at the break cemented what was one of Cumberland’s best halves of the season, shooting 57 percent from the field.

The Wildcats came out looking to match the Phoenix’s energy from the first half, scoring six of the first eight points after the break, but Cumberland calmed them down and scored a quick four points to make…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/phoenix-men-survive-strong-comeback-045900220.html

Author : The Lebanon Democrat, Tenn.

Publish date : 2025-01-11 04:59:00

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