BREVARD, N.C. - The Brevard College's men's basketball team (1-5, 1-0 USAS) burst onto the scene fast in Saturday afternoon's conference-opening contest against the Berea College Mountaineers (4-3, 0-1 USAS), outscoring the visitors 27-4 in the game's first eight minutes to propel the Tornados to their first victory of the season, 76-68 at the Boshamer Gymnasium.
Brevard started out hot and withstood a fierce Berea rally, as the Mountaineers battled back from a deficit as much as 24 points and eventually tied the contest with 6:32 left in the second half. Brevard's resilience paid off, however, as the Tornados outscored the Mountaineers 20-12 down the stretch with big shots and defensive stops to claim the victory.
Saturday's win marks the first victory in a conference-opener for Brevard men's basketball since the 2010-11 season, when the then-NCAA DII Tornados dropped the Anderson University Trojans, 85-84, on December 4, 2010.
"We've been close a lot this year, so I am happy for our guys," said Head Coach Lee Burgess following his team's first victory of the season. "They've stuck with it - the start to the season wasn't what we were envisioning, and that can take its toll on you - but our guys stuck with it and I am proud of them."
Brevard's offensive surge was charged by junior forward Cannon Lamb, who tied his career-high set this season with 21 points to lead all scorers in Saturday's win. The Marion, North Carolina native shot 9-of-14 from the field and grabbed a team-best seven boards alongside three assists.
Senior forward Levi Lamb added 17 points on 7-of-12 shooting while contributing two steals to Brevard's defensive efforts. Fellow senior forward Demari Hopper joined Cannon Lamb and Levi Lamb in double-digit scoring, totaling 13 points on an efficient 6-of-8 shooting while swiping two steals and swatting two blocks.
Making their first starts respectively as Brevard College student-athletes, Freshman Ja'Michael Boone and sophomore Mike Williams each helped spark BC's offense. Boone scored points via three 3-pointers, while Williams added seven points - including four free throws made - five rebounds, and four assists.
Berea was paced by double-digit scoring outputs from Torrell Carter (19 points) and Isaac Caudill (12 points). Carter recorded a double-double of 19 points and 11 boards.
The Tornados shot their highest percentage from the field to-date in the 2019-20 season (51.8%) in Saturday's victory. Brevard hit nine 3-pointers while dishing out 17 assists.
Cannon Lamb got Brevard's scoring started with a layup 15 seconds into action that he quickly followed up by a 3-point jump shot to give the Tornados an early 5-0 lead within the game's first minute. Following a Berea bucket, Brevard's Hopper got involved in the scoring outburst with a layup. Boone hit a long-range shot to extend Brevard's advantage to 10-2 and keep the Tornados a perfect 4-of-4 shooting from the field.
After the Mountaineers scored on their next possession, bringing the score to 10-4 in favor of the Tornados, Brevard strung together a staggering 17-0 scoring run that rocked the Boshamer Gymnasium. Over the game's first eight minutes of action, the Tornados were shooting 12-of-14 (86%) from the field en route to their impressive, game-high 24-point advantage.
Berea was able to halt Brevard's massive run, cutting into the deficit in-between media timeouts with an 8-0 scoring stretch of its own to bring the score 27-12 with 7:45 left in the first half.
By the under-four media timeout, the Mountaineers drew to within 11 points, 31-20, with 3:21 left until intermission. A pair of Carter free throws cut Brevard's lead to single-digits at 31-22, but the Tornados stretched their lead back to a double-digit cushion, 39-27, at halftime.
The Mountaineers were able to come out of the locker rooms clicking, as the visitors cut Brevard's advantage to single digits before the under-16 timeout. After Levi Lamb extended the Tornado lead back to nine points at 45-36 after a jump shot, the Mountaineers answered back with a game-long 8-0 scoring run that had Berea knocking right on the door. Brevard called a timeout with 13:42 remaining and a slim one-point cushion, 45-44.
Out of the timeout, Cannon Lamb pushes Brevard's lead back up with a quick layup before the visitors answered right back with a two-point field goal of their own. Senior guard Qadhafi Turner and freshman guard Messiag Pankey came into the contest and hit a pair of key 3-pointer that helped Brevard keep its slim lead, but a quick 6-1 scoring run from the Mountaineers tied the contest for the first time at 56 points apiece with 6:32 left in regulation.
However, the Tornados would not be denied. Boone stopped Berea's rally with a 3-pointer from the Fort Deposit, Alabama native to give the Tornados the lead back, 59-56.
The Mountaineers kept the game tight, trimming Brevard's lead to just one point on two separate occasions before a Hopper 3-point jump shot with 1:44 left kickstarted Brevard's closing stretch that saw the Tornados pull away from Berea. A pair of Carter free throws cut the host's lead to two points with 1:33 left, but perfect free throw shooting down the stretch sealed Brevard's first victory of 2019-20. The Tornados went 8-of-8 at the charity stripe over the game's final minute to pull away with the win.
The game marked the last home game for Brevard men's basketball in the 2019 calendar year. The Tornados return to game action in 10 days with a pair of USA South road matchups as Brevard travels to Danville, Virginia to take on Averett University (5-2, 1-0 USAS) on Tuesday, December 17 at 7:30 p.m. before heading to Greensboro, North Carolina for a Wednesday, December 18 bout against Greensboro College (6-2), which is also a 7:30 tip-off.
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