The Bruins basketball team snapped their seven-game losing streak on Tuesday night as the team rallied in the second half to defeat region-rival Toccoa Falls College 70-64. With the win, the Bruins improve to 1-7 on the season and 1-1 in region play.
"This was a total team win tonight," Bruins Head Coach Burton Uwarow said. "Everyone on the team got in the game and everyone contributed. We had our best inside out game that we've had all season and had several guys rebound after not playing well on Saturday."
The Bruins have faced injury and adversity to begin the 2018-19 season while also playing through a tough season schedule to begin the year. The team was coming off a loss in their first region game of the season on Saturday as the Bruins fell to Trinity Baptist College. As they took the court against the Screaming Eagles, the Bruins were determined to not let this road game slip away.
From the opening tip, the two teams exchanged baskets as the score remained close. Luke Baham was the difference early on for the Screaming Eagles as he knocked down several shots to give TFC a 9-4 lead. Baham continued to plague the Bruins defense as he scored in the paint and hit another three to spark a run for TFC as they increased their lead 18-5.
The Bruins tried to find an answer offensively but it seemed every basket by BJU was answered by two or three from the Screaming Eagles as they continued to stretch their lead. With under eight minutes to go in the half, the freshmen stepped up for the Bruins as Daniel Fuller hit a three and Stone Champion hit a pair of threes to get the Bruins right back in it. Despite trailing by double digits early on, the Bruins were able to close the half strong as they trailed TFC 42-34 at the break.
In the second half, the Bruins came out looking to get back into the game. Quiyante Burroughs played big for the team in the early stages as the sophomore scored six straight points for the team. Still, the Screaming Eagles maintained their lead as they found an answer to each Bruins run.
At the halfway point of the half, Fuller came up big again for the Bruins with a pair of three pointers to close the gap as the Bruins trailed 54-52. The Bruins took their first lead of the game after Jayson Barnhart scored in the paint to give the Bruins a 58-57 lead. The Screaming Eagles answered right back before free throws tied the game at 59-59 with a minute to play.
Quyante Burroughs would be the hero for the Bruins in the final minute as he converted an and-one opportunity and made seven free throws down the stretch as the Bruins completed the comeback with a 70-64 win.
"We came back in the second half after being punched in the mouth and we responded the way a mature team needs to," Coach Uwarow said. "We work on free throws all the time in practice and tonight it paid off for us. Guys like Quiyante really wanted to play well tonight after not having a great game on Saturday so I was proud of those guys for responding the way they did."
Burroughs led the Bruins with 19 points and 7 rebounds while four players scored in double figures for the team. Jayson Barnhart finished with 14 points while Daniel Fuller and Stone Champion each had 11.
Next up, the Bruins will be on the road again on Thursday as they face Gardner-Webb University in Boiling Springs, North Carolina.
