BREVARD, N.C. - The Brevard College men's basketball team (5-16, 4-10 USAS) returns to the confines of the Boshamer Gymnasium on Saturday at 2 p.m. to battle LaGrange College (5-14, 4-8 USAS) in USA South Conference competition.
The BC Department of Athletics will host Team IMPACT Day alongside Saturday's contest. Before last season, the Tornado men's basketball program signed Russell McKay from Cherokee, North Carolina through Team IMPACT to become an honorary member of the basketball team.
Team IMPACT is a national nonprofit headquartered in Boston, MA that connects children facing serious or chronic illnesses with college athletic teams, forming life-long bonds and life-changing outcomes. Since 2011, Team IMPACT has matched nearly 1,600 children with more than 500 colleges and universities in 49 states, reaching over 50,000 participating student-athletes. The child joins the athletic team and the student-athletes join the child's support team. Throughout the journey, the child gains strength, camaraderie, and support while the student-athletes experience lessons of courage, resiliency, and perspective.
The Tornados come into Saturday's matchup seeking revenge from a defeat suffered on the road to LaGrange earlier in the season. BC dropped a 93-64 decision to the Panthers in LaGrange, Georgia on January 25.
Sophomore Hayden Cassell dropped a career-high 16 points off the bench in the matchup, shooting an efficient 6-of-8 mark from the field while hitting four free throws. Seniors Demari Hopper (15 points) and Levi Lamb (11 points) joined Cassell in double-figures, while Noah Lea added nine points off the bench.
Most recently, the Tornados fell in a tight USA South Conference road match to Piedmont College, 65-61, last Wednesday.
Four Tornados scored in double figures in the defeat, led by Hopper who registered 16 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the field. Cannon Lamb scored 14 points, draining three 3-pointers. Qadhafi Turner hit four 3-pointers en route to 13 points, while Levi Lamb added 11 points.
Hopper and Levi Lamb each pulled down a team-high eight rebounds to go along with their double-digit scoring outputs. Lamb also registered four steals and two blocked shots.
The Tornados will be in search of their first victory over the Panthers since the two sides first meeting in 2017. BC has dropped its first five matchups to the Panthers over that span.
Brevard closes the 2019-20 season with two-of-three games at the Boshamer Gymnasium. The Tornados face Covenant College on Tuesday, February 11 at 7:30 p.m., as BC hosts Jameson's Joy Night. To read more about the Jameson's Joy Memorial Service Foundation, please click here.
To follow the latest news and updates surrounding Brevard College Athletics, follow the Tornados on Twitter and Instagram @bctornados, subscribe to 'Brevard College Tornados' on YouTube, follow 'Brevard College Tornados' on SoundCloud, or like 'Brevard College Athletics' on Facebook. In addition, follow "brevardcollege" on Flickr for the latest photos from all Brevard College events.
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