Berea Downs Brevard in USA South Battle

Berea Downs Brevard in USA South Battle

Joseph Marvin: Assistant Sports Information Director

BEREA, Ky. – The Brevard College Tornados Men's Basketball team (4-11, 1-7 USAS) fell to the Berea Mountaineers (8-8, 3-6 USAS) by a final score of 67-53 on Wednesday night in Berea, Ky.

On a night where both sides struggled to find their rhythm early in the contest, Berea used its long-range attack and physical foul-drawing savvy to pull away from the Tornados.

Messiah Pankey, the sparkplug for Brevard early in the game, established his new career-high in the contest. Pankey scored 15 points on an efficient 6-of-10 from the field while grabbing three boards and swiping two steals before being fouled out late in the second half.

Levi Lamb got hot late for the Tornados, scoring 14 points on 5-of-11 shooting. 12 of Lamb's points came in the second half of action.

Qadhafi Turner added nine points in reserve effort, hitting 3-of-6 from the field while grabbing three rebounds and dishing two steals. Sophomore guard Demari Hopper tallied six points and tied freshman Joshua Wilson with a team-high six boards.  

Berea's Isaac Caudill, the USA South's fourth-leading scorer (18.6 points-per-game), led all scorers with 24 points on 6-of-10 shooting, including a fiery 5-of-9 from distance. Torell Carter, the USA South's third-leading scorer (19.5 points-per-game), caught fire in the second half to propel Berea. Carter tallied all of his 18 points in the second period of action.

Both sides hit an identical number of shots (20), however, the story was told beyond the arc. Berea hit 9-of-23 (39.%) from downtown compared to Brevard's 4-of-19 (21.1%) mark.

The Tornados left much to be desired at the free throw line, only hitting a 9-of-21 clip from the charity stripe.

A bright spot for Brevard was its defense, as the Tornados forced 17 Berea turnovers, capitalizing them into 16 points-off-turnovers.

Brevard and Berea both jumped out to sluggish starts early in the contest, as Berea held a slim 6-4 advantage heading into the first media timeout.

The Mountaineers began to find their distance as the first half wore on, knocking in three 3-pointers to extend their lead to 13-6.

Brevard found a late first-half spurt, as a Pankey 3-pointer and a Lamb jumper cut Berea's lead to just four points at 24-20.

Berea's Isaac Caudill hit back-to-back 3-pointers to send Berea to the locker room with some momentum, as the Mountaineers held a 30-20 lead at the break.

Both sides went back and forth through the first media timeout. However, a Caudill long-range shot pushed Berea's lead to 16 at 39-23.

The Mountaineers continued to build their lead, as a Carter layup with 11:34 left gave Berea its largest lead of the night at 49-28.

Pankey and Lamb would fight to help Brevard battle back. With the game sitting at 60-45 in favor of Berea, Lamb drilled a 3-pointer to cut the deficit to 12 points. Following a Berea turnover, Pankey drove in the lane and connected on a driving layup while being fouled to slice Berea's lead to 10 points at 60-50.

However, it proved to be too little too late, as the Mountaineers sank their late free throws to escape the Seabury Center with a 67-53 conference victory.

Brevard will return home for a Saturday afternoon rematch doubleheader against LaGrange College at the Boshamer Gymnasium. BC's men play at 2 p.m., followed by the women at 4 p.m.

The Tornados will look to avenge a December 16, 2018, nail-biting 80-73 overtime loss suffered in LaGrange, Ga.

To follow along with all the latest news and updates surrounding Brevard College Athletics, please follow the Tornados on Twitter and Instagram @bctornados, or like Brevard College Athletics on Facebook.

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