Hackettstown, NJ – The Highlanders traveled to Centenary College Wednesday night where they defeated the Cyclones 58-55 for their second win of the 2014-15 season. Reuben Lacy had his sixth double-double of the season with 20 points and 11 rebounds.
Cairn only took 42 shots from the field in the game, compared to 61 for the Cyclones, but the Highlanders made 45% of the those shots. The Highlanders also got to the free throw line more than the Cyclones adding up to a 10-point advantage in the end.
Most of the Highlanders' free-throws came in the first half, where they made 11-12. Centenary was just 1-3 in the first half from the charity stripe. Cairn also took better shots from beyond-the-arc, going 4-6 in the first half where Centenary was 2-10.
The Highlanders' high-percentage shooting was a theme throughout the game and no one exemplified this theme better than Aaron Stovall. Stovall went 6-7 from the field and 3-4 from three-point range in the game for a season-high 16 points. Stovall hit one of his three-pointers at the end of the first half to give the Highlanders their largest lead of the game at eight.
Centenary quickly cut the deficit after returning from the locker rooms and the cross-state conference rivals battled point-for-point until the final seconds of the game. In total, the lead changed hands 15 times and was tied eight times.
"It was an exciting win for us and the team showed a lot of composure in a tough game," explained head coach Jason O'Connell after the win. "Everyone played extremely hard and we did a very good job of sticking to our game plan."
With 6:22 left to go in the game, Seil Park put the Highlanders up 49-47 with a jumper and Cairn didn't give up the lead from there. Centenary tied the game twice but the Highlanders kept the Cyclones just far enough away. Four more Highlanders scored the team's final four baskets, capped off by Stovall's jumper with 46 seconds to play.
"Our defense was great tonight and it was good to see some of our players step up and hit big shots, especially Reuben and Aaron," said O'Connell.
The Cyclones certainly had chances in the final ¾ of a minute of the game, but the Highlanders' defense came through when it needed to. Omar Askia blocked one of the Cyclones' shot attempts and the team collected defensive rebounds after missed three-point shot attempts by Centenary.
Spencer Rashaan and Myles McLeod led the Cyclones in scoring for the game but it wasn't enough to stop the Highlanders tonight. Askia made just one field goal in the game but went 7-8 from the free-throw line for nine points total for the Highlanders.
With the win the Highlanders improve to 2-17 on the year and 2-11 in the conference. Centenary dropped to 9-10 overall and 6-6 in the CSAC with the loss. Cairn will next host Neumann University this Saturday, Feb. 7, at 3 p.m.
