by Russell Vannozzi | Dec 13, 2018 | News Slider, Sports
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – When Jordan Nwora scored Louisville’s first 11 points on Tuesday, it appeared it might be a long night for the Lipscomb men’s basketball team. But after making some defensive adjustments, the Bisons gave the Cardinals all they could handle in what was nearly a massive upset. However, a Kenny Cooper turnover with 1:03 left was followed by a fadeaway jumper from Louisville’s Christen Cunningham, giving the Cardinals a narrow, 72-68 victory at the KFC Yum! Center. Lipscomb guard Garrison Mathews led the Bisons with 20 points after producing a combined 10 in his last two outings against Belmont and Navy. The senior said he hopes the Louisville experience will help prepare the Bisons for March basketball. “I think we can play with anybody,” Mathews said. “I don’t think we can beat everybody, but I think we can play with anybody and give everybody a game. It’s good experience for hopefully when we make the [NCAA] tournament.” Lipscomb (7-3) shot just 35 percent (23-of-65) from the floor – well below its season average of 47 percent. But the Bisons went on an 8-0 run just before the break to cut Louisville’s halftime lead to 34-33. “It wasn’t our best performance by any stretch,” Lipscomb coach Casey Alexander said. “Louisville had a lot to do with that, obviously. We put ourselves in position where we had a chance late. That shows a lot of grit and fight, so I’m proud of our team for that.” Lipscomb trailed by as many as 12 with 14:35 left to play, but a pair of threes from Mathews and baskets by Cooper...
by Russell Vannozzi | Dec 9, 2018 | News Slider, Sports
Lipscomb coach Casey Alexander was not happy with his team despite leading Navy 52-45 at halftime on Sunday. The Midshipmen offense entered the contest only averaging 62.5 points per game – good for 336th in the nation. “I just didn’t think we were dialed in defensively,” Alexander said. “I didn’t think our energy was very good. [Navy] made all the effort plays in the first half.” The Bisons (7-2) dialed up the defense in the second half and continued an offensive onslaught that resulted in a 107-81 blowout victory over Navy at Allen Arena. It was Lipscomb’s first 100-point performance of the season. Lipscomb made its post presence felt throughout the contest as Rob Marberry and Ahsan Asadullah finished with 26 and 24 points, respectively. The pair combined to shoot 20-of-24 from the field and 10-of-12 from the charity strip. “50 points out of our five spot is pretty good,” Alexander said. “[They] were highly efficient.” The Bisons also shot nearly 47 percent (10-of-21) from beyond the arc, making for a lethal attack that Navy could not match. “We just need a balanced [offense],” Marberry said. “With any of our five players on the court, we’re going to have a good guard and post presence. We’re excited to have that balance and depth this year.” Navy (3-6) was led by redshirt freshman guard John Carter Jr., who had 17 points in what was a homecoming of sorts for him. Carter is a Spring Hill native that graduated from Summit High School in 2017. George Kiernan (15 points), Cam Davis (13) and Josiah Strong (11) also finished in double figures for...
by Russell Vannozzi | Dec 6, 2018 | News Slider, Sports
This year’s Lipscomb basketball team may be one of the most talented the school has ever assembled. They just won’t be remembered by their Belmont performances. Although senior Nathan Moran had a chance to win it with a fadeaway three as the clock expired, the Bruins played like the better team for most of what became a 76-74 Belmont victory at the Curb Event Center Tuesday night. This one hurts a bit more because it came less than three weeks after an 87-83 home loss to the Bruins on Nov. 15. The Bisons are now 6-2, with both defeats at the hands of their archrival. Lipscomb also missed out on two opportunities for quality wins because Belmont (7-1) appears to be primed for a stellar year and possibly an OVC title. But these losses won’t define Lipscomb’s season. In fact, the very opposite is true. Short of a near-perfect season, the Bisons won’t be in consideration for an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. They must win the ASUN tournament title or they’ll be heading to the NIT, CIT or watching March basketball from home, regardless of how the rest of the regular season goes. That’s because the ASUN is simply too weak of a conference. Only four of the nine ASUN teams are currently in the top 250 of the NCAA’s new NET ranking system. Lipscomb’s strength of schedule will diminish as it enters ASUN play, and its chances for quality wins will be minimal. But Tuesday’s Battle of the Boulevard wasn’t all bad. Lipscomb didn’t play its best basketball yet still managed to give the Bruins all...
by Russell Vannozzi | Dec 1, 2018 | News Slider, Sports
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – It had been more than a decade since Lipscomb and Middle Tennessee last met on the hardwood. Despite being separated by just 40 miles, the two teams previously played on Nov. 16, 2007, when the Blue Raiders took a 68-62 win at Murphy Center. “We’ve talked on and off,” Lipscomb coach Casey Alexander said. “I talked to [former Middle Tennessee coach] Kermit [Davis] a few times, and it just didn’t work out one way or another. It’s great for us – it’s a good local game. We’ll see if it continues, but that’s just kind of the way it goes.” Saturday’s long-awaited battle did not disappoint – at least for Lipscomb fans. The Bisons used four double-digit scorers to pull away from Middle Tennessee in an 84-74 victory. Lipscomb survives another tough road test Since dropping to Belmont at home on Nov. 15, the Bisons have now reeled off four-straight road victories. The 6-1 start is Lipscomb’s best since the 2004-05 season. Middle Tennessee (3-5) did not make things easy. Antonio Green had 21 first-half points, and the Blue Raiders held a narrow 38-37 advantage at the break. “I’ve got a lot of respect for [Middle Tennessee],” Alexander said. “We had to fight really hard, we had to make a lot of plays, and we just happened to be on the right end of experience.” Mathews drops 29 points, nearing 2,000 for his career Lipscomb’s Garrison Mathews is nearing another major statistical milestone. The senior guard scored 29 points on Saturday to move into 10th place on Lipscomb’s all-time leading scoring list with 1,868 career points. He...
by Russell Vannozzi | Nov 25, 2018 | News Slider, Sports
MOREHEAD, Ky. – Losing to Belmont is never a part of the master plan for the Lipscomb men’s basketball team. Yet, despite dropping an 87-83 contest to their rival on Nov. 15, the Bisons have since reeled off three-straight victories and have their season trending in a positive direction just as the nonconference schedule starts to get serious. “After that Belmont loss, we just knew we didn’t play like we should have,” senior forward Rob Marberry said. “When we have a loss like that, you have to [figure out] what you did wrong, and we did.” It was certainly a productive Thanksgiving break for the Bisons, who also defeated SMU and No. 18 TCU earlier in the week. The win over the Horned Frogs was Lipscomb’s first-ever victory over a ranked team. “We went into the game knowing that we had a shot,” Marberry said. “We can beat any team, we can beat anybody right now. We have that in the back of our head throughout each game and [try to] play like it.” Lipscomb’s latest conquest came Sunday afternoon at Morehead State – an 87-55 drubbing that was never really in doubt. And the Bisons showed no signs of a letdown after their two wins in Texas. “What I was most concerned about with our team was the mentality that we took to the floor,” Lipscomb coach Casey Alexander said. “But I was as pleased as I’ve been in a long time with our effort and our desire to play well.” Marberry finished with 13 points and six rebounds for Lipscomb. After missing Lipscomb’s first two games with...
