Owen Jacobs’ 23 points led the Berry College men’s basketball team to a 76-72 win against Birmingham-Southern College on Friday night at the Cage Center. The Vikings rallied from a 22-point deficit in the game.
Jacobs posted his fifth double-double of the year for the Vikes, scoring 23 points and collecting 14 rebounds in the win. Jacobs was also 9-13 shooting, as well as 5-12 from the free throw line.
The win improves BC to 6-11 overall and 2-7 in the Southern Athletic Association. The loss drops the Panthers to 13-7 and 5-4.
BSC led 38-27 at halftime. The Panthers held a 51-29 lead with 15:54 remaining before Vikes began to chip away at their large deficit.
With just over a minute left on the clock, Lee McCloud sank a three-point shot to give Berry its first lead of the game at 71-70.
BSC fought back hard and tied it once more, but McCloud’s perfect 4-4 free throw shooting in the last thirty-five seconds of the game solidified the win for BC.
McCloud put up 16 points for the Vikings in the win, 14 of which came in the second half. He was 5-11 shooting, as well as a perfect 5-5 from the free throw line.
Two other players scored double digit points in the win: Lukas Korn and Tyler Harville.
Korn scored 11 points for BC. He was 4-6 shooting, and 3-4 from the free throw line. He also collected seven rebounds in the win. Harville scored 11 points on the night, sinking three three-point shots.
Although BSC shot 48-percent (24-50) to the Viking’s 45-percent (27-60), Berry made 65-percent (15-23) of their free throws to BSC’s 59-percent (16-27).
For the Panthers, Ian Thom scored 19 points in the loss. Thom was 5-7 shooting, as well as 7-10 from the free throw line. He also made two three-pointers for BSC.
“I was excited about the effort in the second half,” said Head Coach Jeff Rogers. “We have a young team and they are working hard each day. It’s nice to see it come together.”
The Vikings host Millsaps College on Sunday, February 8, at 3 p.m. at the Cage Center.
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