GREENSBORO, N.C. — Averett University men's basketball nearly completed a remarkable comeback Wednesday night, erasing a 15-point second-half deficit before falling just short in a heartbreaking 69-68 road loss to Greensboro College at Hanes Gymnasium.
Averett (1-1) had one final opportunity to steal the victory in the closing seconds after fighting all the way back to even the score. With six seconds remaining and the game tied at 68-68, Greensboro's (1-0) Will Gray stepped to the free-throw line and converted one of two attempts to give the Pride a one-point advantage. Averett called timeout to set up one final possession, but junior forward Zach Skogen's three-point attempt as time expired missed its mark, allowing Greensboro to escape with the victory.
Averett's late surge was fueled by a tremendous effort on the offensive glass and several key defensive plays. After trailing by as many as 15 points, the Cougars used a series of second-chance opportunities and turnovers to put themselves within reach of a comeback.
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The final push began with just over six minutes remaining, as senior guard Timayahs Bracey knocked down a three-pointer to cut Greensboro's lead to 64-52. Freshman forward Corbin Guerry followed with a layup at the 5:16 mark, bringing the deficit down to 10.
Averett continued to apply pressure defensively, with sophomore Tyler Stephens coming up with a steal before the Cougars converted another opportunity at the free-throw line. Stephens knocked down both attempts to make it a 64-56 contest with 4:34 remaining.
Moments later, Skogen capitalized on another Greensboro turnover, finishing inside to bring Averett within six at 64-58. Greensboro briefly regained some breathing room when DJ Jackson scored in the paint to make it 66-58, but the Cougars refused to go away. Skogen continued to lead the charge, converting two free throws before grabbing an offensive rebound and finishing another basket inside. He added the ensuing free throw to complete a three-point possession, cutting the deficit to just 66-63 with 2:19 remaining.
After a defensive stop, Averett had an opportunity to make it an even closer game, but Greensboro eventually regained possession and Jackson drew a foul. The Pride's leading scorer converted both free throws with 58 seconds remaining to extend the advantage to 68-63. With the clock winding down, senior guard Josh Seiler delivered a critical three-pointer with 49 seconds left, bringing Averett within two at 68-66.
The Cougars then forced another Greensboro turnover, giving them another opportunity to tie or take the lead.
After Seiler's three-point attempt missed, Bracey grabbed the offensive rebound and found Skogen underneath the basket. Skogen finished the dunk with 30 seconds remaining, tying the game at 68-68 and completing Averett's comeback from a 15-point deficit. However, Gray's late free throw proved to be the difference, as Greensboro held on for the narrow victory.
Greensboro opened the contest with an early 2-0 deficit after transfer junior guard/forward Timothy Robinson scored the game's first basket for Averett. The Pride responded with an 11-0 scoring run, taking advantage of defensive stops and transition opportunities to build a 13-2 advantage just under five minutes into the contest. Jackson helped spark the early run with a three-pointer, while Quamir Ingram added another triple and Cam Smith contributed a basket inside.
The Cougars began chipping away at the deficit behind baskets from Stephens and Seiler before Kofi Williams added a layup to make it 15-11. Greensboro briefly extended its advantage to 18-11, but Stephens answered with another basket and Skogen converted a pair of free throws to bring Averett within three at 19-16.
After Greensboro pushed its advantage back to five, Skogen scored inside and the Cougars continued to battle for opportunities around the basket. However, Caden Caskey converted three consecutive free throws for the Pride, and Zaquan Bowling added a layup to help Greensboro establish a 24-18 lead.
Bracey answered with a basket inside, but Greensboro continued to maintain its advantage. Jackson and Elijah Cathcart helped the Pride build their lead back to double digits, eventually reaching a 39-27 advantage in the closing moments of the first half.
Bracey provided a much-needed spark for Averett just before the break, knocking down a three-pointer at the buzzer to send the Cougars into halftime trailing 39-30.
Averett carried that momentum into the second half, as Stephens converted a free throw and Robinson scored inside to cut the deficit to six at 39-33. Greensboro responded with another scoring push, extending its lead to 41-33 before Seiler knocked down a three-pointer. Bracey followed with another triple, bringing the Cougars within two at 41-39 just over three minutes into the half.
The Pride answered with a basket from Gray, and Robinson helped keep Averett within striking distance with another finish inside. However, Caskey connected from beyond the arc to push Greensboro's lead to 46-41. Robinson converted a free throw to make it a four-point game, but Jackson scored inside and added a free throw to help the Pride stretch their advantage to 49-42.
Greensboro continued to build on its momentum, getting a dunk from Mohamed Ndiaye and a pair of free throws from Gray before Stephens answered with a layup. After Gray added a fast-break dunk, the Pride had reestablished a nine-point advantage at 58-49.
Skogen led the Cougars with 14 points and nine rebounds, shooting 4-of-7 from the floor while converting six out of seven free-throw attempts. Seiler added 13 points, while Stephens and Robinson each contributed 12 points. Bracey finished with 11 points, including three three-pointers.
Averett also controlled the battle on the offensive glass, finishing with 20 offensive rebounds and 24 second-chance points compared to just four second-chance points for Greensboro. The Cougars totaled 44 rebounds, including 24 on the defensive end, and scored 36 points in the paint.
