The Bruins picked up a tough win on the road on Tuesday night as the team held off Brevard College 80-78. Jayson Barnhart led the Bruins with 24 points as the team improves to 2-3 on the season.
"Our guys are competing well against division three opponents. It is good for our guys to see what it takes to compete at this level and it has been good for us to get that experience early on this season." Bruins Head Coach Burton Uwarow said. "We have struggled some in first semester in previous years with defending the three and not giving our opponent second shots. That is something we are just going to have to get better at."
The Bruins came into the game after splitting their two games on Friday and Saturday in Mount Berry, Georgia. Brevard entered the game at 0-2 to begin the season and the home team was hoping to find the win column as the two teams took the court.
From the opening tip, the Bruins and Tornados went back and forth trading baskets with the score remaining close early on. The Bruins relied early and often on their senior Jayson Barnhart and he delivered shooting 6-7 in the first half and scoring 12 points.
Near the midway point of the half, Barnhart scored on a layup to tie the game at 20-20. The Tornados came right back as they took the lead thanks to a threes by Levi Lamb and Mike Williams. The Bruins responded with a run of their own as Chapman Harwood and Nate Ellenwood scored to spark an 11-2 run and give the Bruins a 35-31 lead. Both teams went back and forth with several lead changes but as the halftime buzzer sounded, the Bruins had a 40-39 lead.
In the second half, the Tornados came out looking to steal momentum and it showed as they went on a run to take a 46-42 lead. Barnhart again provided the scoring touch for the Bruins as he proved to be efficient in and around the rim for the team.
As the game began to wind down, the score remained close with neither team able to build a sizable lead. With under two minutes to play, Cannon Lamb made a layup for the Tornados to tie the game at 74-74. Lamb would give Brevard a one-point advantage with a free throw but the Bruins came back as Jon Allen hit a three to make it 77-75.
The Bruins defense stood strong, forcing the Tornados into tough looks in the closing possessions of the game. With just fifteen seconds to play, Nate Ellenwood calmly made two free throws to give the Bruins a 79-75 advantage.
It looked as though the Bruins would hang on for the win, but Lamb hit a three with two seconds to go to make the score 79-78. Ellenwood was fouled and went back to the line where he made one of two free throws. The Tornados had one last chance but their desperation shot as time expired hit the back board as the Bruins held on for an 80-78 win.
"We got a spark from the guys who came off the bench in the second half," Coach Uwarow said. "We started off the second half with three straight turnovers and put some guys in and finished that half with only two more. There are things we have to be better at but "
Barnhart finished the game with 24 points after shooting 11-13 from the floor. Nate Ellenwood also had a solid game for the team with 12 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, and three steals. The Bruins shot 54% from the floor while winning the rebounding margin 29-28.
Next up, the Bruins will be on the road again this weekend as the team takes on Huntingdon College on Friday night in LaGrange, Georgia.
