The Bruins picked up their third straight victory on Friday night as the team upset #5 nationally ranked Trinity Baptist College 81-76 in the Davis Field House in Greenville, South Carolina. Four players scored in double figures for the Bruins as the team improves to 8-7 on the season and 3-2 in South region play.
"This was a tough week for us but our guys responded well," Bruins interim head coach Tony Miller said. "Trinity is a tough team and they have a lot of good players and are going to win a lot of games this year. It was good to get this win and the little things we did tonight added up. The guys came up big and I'm proud of them."
The Bruins came into Friday's game on the heels of back to back wins over Mississippi University and Johnson & Wales University. The team knew they would be in for a tough region matchup on Friday as they welcomed Trinity Baptist who came into the game with an eight-game winning streak and standing at 10-5 on the season and a perfect 2-0 in region play.
From the opening tip, the Bruins came out strong as Henry Blair hit a pair of threes and Tostadas Pouncey added another as the Bruins stormed out to a 13-2 lead. The Bruins continued to hold strong defensively while using good ball movement to push the tempo and find high percentage looks.
Near the midway point of the half, back to back baskets from Dillon Harris and Tostadas Pouncey stretched the Bruins lead to 26-8. It looked as though the Bruins would blow the game wide open but the Eagles came clawing back ending the first half on a big run as they cut the deficit to just 41-35 at halftime.
In the second half, the Bruins came out looking to add to their lead. Trevor Brunson knocked down back to back jumpers for the Bruins as the team continued to carry a slim lead over the Eagles. TBC refused to back down as they kept within striking distance thanks to the post play of Fausto Alvarez who finished the night with a double-double 15 points and 12 rebounds.
With just over eight minutes to play, Stephan Hugley scored a tough basket in the paint to push the Bruins lead back to double-digits 62-52. From there, the Eagles came right back eventually cutting the deficit to 74-71 with just under two minutes to play.
The Bruins were able to make key free throws down the stretch as the team maintained a slim lead over the Eagles. Trinity Baptist tried to mount one last rally to tie the game but the Bruins held on by continuing to make free throws as they completed the upset 81-76.
"We've been stressing that the 'boring' stuff wins," Coach Miller said. "Not in the way of being slow and laborious but just the little things that help you win games. Our guys have been working hard individually and you saw that tonight. They played well on both sides of the ball and we were able to beat a good team in our region."
Henry Blair led the Bruins with 21 points and 5 rebounds in the game while Tostadas Pouncey had 16 points and Trevor Brunson and Stephan Hugley each finished with 10. The Bruins shot 83% from the free throw line as a team and nearly 50% from the field in the game.
Next up, the Bruins will have another South region matchup on Saturday night as the team welcomes rival Pensacola Christian College. Tip-off for the game is scheduled for 7 p.m. in Greenville, South Carolina.
