Fresh off a win against Piedmont, the men's basketball team has a weekend of USA South games against the Scots' teams. Tonight, the Panthers are on the road at the Covenant Scots and on Sunday hosts the Maryville Scots in Mariotti Gym.
LC (6-8, 1-0 USA South) outlasted Piedmont 66-62 on Tuesday in its first game since Dec. 30. Junior Zac Hill had a game high 16 points to go with seven rebounds to lead the Panthers. Hill is fourth in the USA South with a 56.0 shooting percentage. Senior Bershard Edwards added 15 points. Senior Kyle Brown was held to a season low five points but pulled down a team best nine rebounds.
Covenant (7-4, 2-0 USA South) defeated Brevard 86-54 at home on Tuesday. The Scots were 12-of-26 shooting 3s in the game. Chris Barnette and Myles Jones led a balanced scoring attack with 13 points each. Brad Palmer had 12 points and Will Crumly 11. Crumly leads the Scots in scoring and rebounding, averaging 16.7 points and 7.0 rebounds per game. Barnette is averaging 15.2 points per game and is shooting 46.5% from 3-point range.
Covenant leads the series 17-14. The Panthers won both meetings last season, including a 70-66 road win. The win snapped a four-game losing streak to the Scots at the Barnes Physical Education Center.
On Sunday, Coach Kendal Wallace goes up against his alma mater. Maryville (13-1, 3-0 USA South) enters the game ranked 16th in the D3hoops.com Top 25 poll and riding an eight-game winning streak. The Scots won at Berea 80-61 on Wednesday. Maryville had four players in double figures, led by Nicholas Clifton's 19 points. Junior Miles Rasnick averages 16.1 points per game to lead the team. Rasnick is shooting 58.1% from the floor, including 40.6% from 3-point range. Clifton and junior Felix Uadiale are second and third in the conference in rebounding, averaging 8.4 and 8.2 rebounds respectively.
Maryville has a 44-11 advantage in the series. Wallace has 10 of LC's wins since becoming head coach. The teams split their two meetings last season. The Panthers won 88-76 at Maryville, with the Scots winning 88-81 in Mariotti Gym.
After this weekend, the Panthers play three games in a four-day span next week. The Panthers play at Piedmont on Thursday, then host Brevard and Berea in Mariotti Gym next Saturday and Sunday.
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