Men's Hoops Closes Home Slate with Conference Win

SHERMAN, Texas - Kidus Getenet scored 24 points and Ethan Pearce anchored a dominant defensive effort to lead the Austin College men's basketball team to a 76-70 victory over Schreiner University on Saturday afternoon at Hughey Gym. With the win, the 'Roos remain in the hunt for a spot in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament with two games left in the regular season.

The victory came in the final home contest of the season for the 'Roos, who improved to 8-15 overall and 5-9 in SCAC play. Austin College built its success on a hot-shooting first half and a 52-44 rebounding advantage that allowed them to withstand several late charges by the Mountaineers.

Getenet was the offensive engine for the 'Roos early, scoring 20 of his game-high 24 points in the first half. He opened the scoring at the 19:11 mark of the first half with a three-pointer, and Austin College then utilized a 15-4 run midway through the half, punctuated by a Tasshir Pina-Warren triple with 9:21 remaining, to extend the lead to 22-11. The 'Roos reached their largest lead of the game at 28-13 following an Ethan Pearce tip-in with 6:52 left in the half.

Schreiner, which fell to 11-12 and 8-6 in conference, refused to go away quietly. Dylan Snow, who led the Mountaineers with 19 points, buried a three-pointer with 1:11 left in the opening period to trim the deficit, though Austin College still took a 45-35 lead into the locker room.

The second half turned into a defensive grind. Pearce, who finished with 12 points, 11 rebounds, and five blocks, had a momentum-shifting play as the Mountaineers began chipping away at the margin, coming up a steal and a fast-break dunk at the 12:39 mark to put the 'Roos up 56-48. The Mountaineers clawed back to within 70-63 following a Mario Johnson layup with 2:45 left on the clock. However, Peyton Gonzales answered with a clutch layup at the 2:12 mark to push the lead back to nine.

Schreiner made one final push in the closing minute, but Getenet iced the game with two free throws at the 18-second mark. In addition to Getenet and Pearce, the 'Roos received 12 points from Pina-Warren and a near double-double from Jordan Hudgins, who contributed 11 points, 11 rebounds, and six assists. Austin College's defense recorded six blocks and eight steals on the day.

Schreiner was paced by Snow's 19 points and six assists. Camden Hyman scored all 12 of his points in the second half for the Mountaineers, and Carson Diamond added 10 points and two blocks, while Mario Johnson cleaned up the glass with 14 rebounds to go along with five points and three blocks. Despite shooting 72.7% (16-of-22) from the free-throw line compared to a struggling 26.7% (4-of-15) for Austin College, the Mountaineers were undone by 35.3% shooting from the floor and a 6-for-27 showing from beyond the arc.

Austin College will conclude its regular season on the road, heading to Arkansas to take on Hendrix and Ozarks next weekend in the final two regular season games of the year.