Men's basketball takes down Westminster, 76-69

Andrew Woodley, Sports Information Director

• Box Score

BETHANY, W.Va. (Jan. 27) - Senior guard Calique Jones (Pittsburgh, Pa./Obama Academy) finished with 26 points, as the Bison pushed their winning-streak to seven games with a 76-69 win over Westminster in a Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) game Saturday evening at the Hummel Field House.

The Bethany College men's basketball team improves to 10-2 in the PAC, 10-9 overall. The win gives the Bison, who started the season 0-5, a winning-record for the first time this season. Meanwhile, the Titans fall to 14-5 overall, 8-4 in conference play.

Jones was unstoppable in the second half, scoring 19 of his game-high 26 points in the final 20 minutes. He ended the night 8-of-17 from the field after opening the game 1-of-7 in the first half. Senior forward Christian Harris (Cleveland, Ohio/Brecksville-Broadview Heights) tallied 13 points, while senior center Liam Davis (Orlando, Fla./Orlando Christian Prep) added  10 points and seven rebounds. Senior guard Jerron Athey (Richmond, Va./Banner Christian) finished the night with the most balanced line for the Bison. Athey recorded seven points, including four free-throws in the final minute, with team-highs of eight rebounds and six assists in the win.

The Bison led by as many as five through the first eight minutes of the contest, but Westminster kept the game close. The Titans took their first lead of the game at 17-13 on back-to-back Cameron Kane-Johnson three pointers with 10:21 remaining in the first half. Bethany answered with seven-unanswered, including a triple by Athey, to reclaim the lead at 20-17 nearing the eight-minute mark.

After the Titans knotted the score back up at 21-21, both teams exchanged three-point shots. Harris knocked down a trey, and, when Westminster tied the game up with a three-pointer, Harris came back with another triple to give Bethany a 27-24 lead with 6:33 remaining in the first half. The Titans had one of its best stretches of the game, scoring eight-straight points over the next three minutes to take a 32-27 edge with three minutes left until halftime. Bethany used baskets by Jones and Davis in the final two minutes to pull within one, while holding Westminster off of the board to head into the locker rooms trailing 32-31.

The Bison scored the first six points out of the break to take a 37-32 lead two minutes into the half. Westminster battled back to reclaim lead the lead at 51-49 on another Kane-Johnson three-point shot with 12:46 left in regulation. The game swung back-and-forth with multiple lead changes and tie scores over the next eight minutes, before the Bison emerged with a 67-61 lead on a Jones three-pointer that forced a Westminster time out with 4:43 remaining in the game.

The Titans came out of the timeout with six-straight points to even the game at 67-67, but Jones had the answer again. He drove the lane and made a jump-shot through contact for a basket-and-one to put the Bison back ahead 70-67 with two minutes left on the clock. Westminster missed two free throws on its end, before Jones knocked down a jump shot from the top of the key to build a five-point lead, 72-67, with 1:20 on the clock. The Titans missed all three of its shot attempts in the final minute and Athey drained all four of his attempts at the free-throw line to seal Bethany's eighth-consecutive win.

Both teams shot 43 percent from the field, but the difference in the game came at the charity stripe. Bethany finished the night 18-of-22 from the free-throw line, compared to the Titans, who were only 10-of-19 (53 percent) at the line.

Westminster's Cameron Kane-Johnson finished with 26 points, while Deontay Scott recorded a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Titans.

The Bison will look to make it eight straight when they travel down to Crestview Hills, Kentucky at 7:30 p.m. to take on league-leading Thomas More (15-4, 11-1 PAC). Bethany is the only team in the PAC with a win over Thomas More this season.