Atchison, Kan. - Despite a fast start in the opening nine minutes and leading by as many as 11 points, the Central Methodist men's basketball team ultimately fell to Benedictine College, 81-70, Saturday afternoon in Atchison, Kan.
CMU falls to 3-8 in the Heart and 6-10 overall, while Benedictine improves to 7-2 in the conference and 10-3 overall.
Similar to the first meeting between the two teams, Central jumped out to a quick lead, highlighted by four three-point baskets and timely free throws from newcomer Jonathan Brown and Kyle McDermed.
The Ravens responded quickly and tied the game at 23-23 with 08:44 remaining in the first half. Benedictine's Matt Austin, who would eventually finish the game with 20 points, knocked down four-straight three-point baskets to give BC an 11 point lead with just under two minutes remaining.
Central ultimately went into the locker room trailing 48-38, led on offense by Brown who finished the half with 13 points and two assists. Benedictine was perfect from the charity stripe in the first frame, converting all 10 of their free-throw attempts.
Despite the Ravens stretching their lead to as many as 19 points in the second half, CMU battled back to cut the lead to 69-65 with 5:21 remaining. However, Benedictine stretched their lead back out to double figures in the closing minutes, winning by a final score of 81-70.
Benedictine did a majority of their damage from the free-throw line, as the Ravens converted on 23-of-24 attempts. The Eagles made seven fewer trips to the charity stripe, knocking down 13-of-17 free throw attempts. BC also knocked down an impressive 50-percent of their three-point baskets, finishing the day with 14 makes.
Brown finished the game with 19 points, 12 of which came from beyond the arc and seven from the free-throw line. He also added four rebounds and three assists. Jayden McGrew set a new season-high with 16 points, shooting 66.6-percent from the field along with five rebounds and two assists in 30 minutes of game action.
Fode Camara and Austin Fisher chipped in seven points apiece, while Camara grabbed a team-high seven rebounds. As a team, Central grabbed 36 rebounds, of which 15 came on the offensive glass.
CMU will next be in action when they host Evangel University Saturday, Jan. 16 at 4:00 p.m. inside Puckett Fieldhouse. The Crusaders won the earlier matchup between the two teams, 79-65 back on Dec. 2 in Springfield.
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