Aces fall just short against Bruins
Belmont wins by three at the Ford Center
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – In an exciting contest that featured 20 lead changes, it was Belmont who converted its late free throws to take an 85-82 win over the University of Evansville men’s basketball team on Saturday inside the Ford Center.
It looked as if the Bruins would cruise to the win in the first half as they led by as many as 15 points. Evansville completed the half on a 17-4 run to trail by just a pair at halftime before retaking the lead early in the second half. Both squads took multiple leads in the second stanza with the Bruins completing the 3-point win.
Cam Haffner was the top scorer in the game, scoring 25 points. He hit seven triples and finished just two points shy of his career scoring high. Tayshawn Comer had 16 points while Connor Turnbull matched his mark of 13 points. Josh Hughes wrapped up the day with ten. Tanner Cuff approached a double-double, setting a new career high with 11 assists while grabbing nine boards.
“Belmont is a really good team especially on the offensive end. They have some excellent shooters. Their pace initially stunned our guys but once we settled in, we did a much better job,” Purple Aces head coach David Ragland said. “I’m proud of the guys effort and how connected we were especially in the second half.”
Tayshawn Comer’s triple got the Aces on the board before the Bruins went up 5-3. Cam Haffner knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers to establish a 9-7 lead. Five in a row put the Bruins back in the lead, but a quick 5-0 spurt by the Aces was capped off by another Comer triple to put UE on top at 14-12.
After retaking a 19-16 lead with 11 minutes left in the half, Belmont made its move. Outscoring Evansville by a 16-4 margin, the Bruins opened a 3-20 lead with 7:25 left in the period. Just when it looked like Belmont was going to pull away, the Aces had other ideas. Michael Day hit a triple to open a 9-0 stretch for UE. Gabriel Pozzato capped the stretch with his first basket after missing the previous eight games.
With just over two minutes remaining in the half, the Bruins held a 39-33 edge. The defense for the Aces continued to clamp down while it was Day picking up four more points to cut the deficit to just two points at halftime – 39-37. Evansville completed the half on a 17-4 run.
Josh Hughes continued the stretch to open the latter half, connecting from downtown to give UE its first lead since early in the game at 40-39. Haffner added two more 3-pointers to put UE in front at 49-46 while Comer picked up a field goal to push the lead to 51-46.
As the game reached the 12-minute mark, Pozzato made his presence known once again. Comer forced a Bruin turnover and found Pozzato ahead of the play. His dunk made it a 57-50 contest. In a back-and-forth game, Belmont had the next run. A 12-4 rally put them on top at 62-61 with just over eight minutes left.
It did not take long for the Aces to counter. Shooting from the edge of the center court logo, Cam Haffner converted his fifth triple of the game on the ensuing possession. The teams continued to swap the lead as the Bruins went back up by a 70-66 margin with UE battling back to jump back on top as Hughes converted another triple before Comer found Turnbull for a dunk that put the Aces in front – 71-70. Turnbull knocked down a pair of free throws at the 3:56 mark that returned the lead to the Aces at 73-72.
Belmont picked up the next four points and held multiple leads down the stretch, but the Aces continued to give themselves a chance. Two free throws put the Bruins in front at 83-79 with 30 ticks remaining. Haffner drained another triple as the deficit was cut back to a point. After Belmont hit two more from the line, Evansville had a final chance to tie the game with four seconds remaining. Unfortunately, a last-second 3-pointer fell short, giving the Bruins the 85-82 victory.
Carter Whitt paced the Bruins with 20 points as the team shot 48.3% on the day. Evansville finished slightly better, hitting 48.4% of its attempts. Both teams had 33 rebounds. The Aces are back home on Wednesday as they face UIC in a 7 p.m. game.
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