CARROLLTON, Ga. - Division II West Georgia held off LaGrange 90-83 in a non-conference game Friday night. The two teams were meeting for the first time since the 1992-93 season.
"We went into this game as our mid-term exam and I'd give us an A-," Coach Kendal Wallace said. "We are a young team so we've had to work on mastering so many of the little things and it showed tonight. We rebounded better and guarded better. We played smarter offensively and took care of the basketball. We are growing as a unit and understanding our roles better. Losing is no fun and the guys feel the same way. Our best basketball is yet to come."
Senior Kyle Brown led LC (4-7) with a game-high 24 points, 15 coming in the first half. Junior Zac Hill followed with a career-high 19 points. Bershard Edwards added 14 points and Cooper Dolhancyk 12.
West Georgia (4-6) got 20 points from Kadeim Jones. Jalen Sasser had 18 and Seth Brown-Carter 16.
The Wolves led by as many as 18 points twice in the first half. The Panthers found themselves trailing 42-24 after Michael Zabetakis hit two free throws with 6:21 left in the half.
Camerin Lyons' jumper opened an 18-3 run for LC over the final five minutes of the half. Lyons' free throw with no time remaining made it a two-point game, 47-45, at the break. Brown and Hill combined for 26 points in the half.
Dolhancyk tied the game at 47 on the Panthers' first possession of the second half. Brown made one of two free throws to give the Panthers their first lead of the game, 48-47.
The Panthers scored on three straight trips down the court to grab a five point lead. Brown had two of the baskets, the second giving LC a 56-51 lead just over five minutes into the second half.
The Wolves ran off six unanswered points to regain the lead, 57-56. The two teams swapped the lead on four straight possessions. Hill's layup off an assist from Brown put the Panthers up for the last time, 60-59, with 12:37 left.
West Georgia answered Hill's basket with an 8-2 run to grab a 67-62 lead. The Panthers spent the rest of the game trying to catch the Wolves.
LC trailed 75-66 with 7:30 remaining. Dolhancyk kept the Panthers within striking distance by scoring the team's next eight points, the last two on a layup to cut the Wolves' lead to 79-74.
Edwards' trey pulled the Panthers within three, 84-81, with 1:58 on the clock. The Wolves held off LC with free throws down the stretch and Sasser's dunk provided the 90-83 final.
The Panthers will play in the Emory Shootout on Dec. 29-30. LC will face Birmingham-Southern and Wisconsin-Whitewater in the tournament.
