Gents Win First Conference Game Of Season On Friday
The Centenary men's basketball team defeated the McMurry University War Hawks by a score of 94-89 in a Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference contest on Friday evening inside Kimbrell Arena.
| Final | 1 | 2 | T |
|---|---|---|---|
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46 | 48 | 94 |
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45 | 44 | 89 |
Abilene, Texas - The Centenary men's basketball team defeated the McMurry University War Hawks by a score of 94-89 in a Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference contest on Friday evening inside Kimbrell Arena.
The Gents (2-9, 1-2 SCAC) scored a season high in points as they recorded their first conference win while the War Hawks fell to 5-7 and 0-3 in SCAC play with the loss.
Centenary led 46-45 at halftime and outscored McMurry 48-44 in the second half to secure the road win. Senior G Quentin Beverly (Katy, Texas) led all scorers with 30 points as he reached double figures for the 10th game in a row as he has scored 20+ points four times this season and now has four 30-point games in his career. Beverly is now just 17 points away from 1,000 in his stellar career.
The Gents shot a sizzling 54.1 % (33-61) from the floor and 52.0 % (13-25) from 3-point range, both season bests, as it marked the first time that Centenary has shot 50 % or better from the floor and beyond the arc in the same game since Feb. 25, 2024 against Colorado College.
The War Hawks shot 40.9 % (27-66) from the floor, 45.2 % (14-31) from beyond the arc, and 21-30 from the free-throw line. McMurry outrebounded Centenary 47-27 and finished with a 16-6 advantage in second-chance points. The Gents, who went 15-25 at the FT line, edged the War Hawks in the paint, 24-22, and had a decisive edge in fastbreak points (12-3) while each team received 14 points from its bench.
The Gents finished with a season-high 18 assists, three blocked shots, and two steals while the War Hawks had 16 assists, one blocked shot, and a steal. Centenary only turned the ball over one time, its fewest since having none against Belhaven University on Nov. 27, 2023. Friday marked the third time that the Gents have finished with single-digit TO's in a game this season. McMurry turned the ball over 10 times which led to 14 Centenary points. The game featured eight ties and eight lead changes.
Freshman G/F Kane Broussard (Iowa, La.) scored a season-high 21 points in 32 minutes as he finished 6-11 from the floor, 4-7 from 3-point range, and 5-6 at the FT line with two rebounds and an assist as he scored in double figures for the fourth time this season.
Freshman G Jaden Braden (Natchitoches, La.) scored 15 in 38 minutes as he also finished 6-11 from the floor, 2-2 from beyond the arc, and 1-2 at the FT line with a season-best nine assists and one rebound. Freshman C Bryce Evans (Austin, Texas) scored eight points in 28 minutes on 3-3 shooting from the floor. He was also 2-2 from beyond the arc with three rebounds, two blocked shots, and one assist.
Sophomore G Nicholas Addison (Cedar Hill, Texas) had six points, four rebounds, and three assists in 26 minutes as he finished with one basket and was 4-6 at the FT line. Junior F Dontarius Coleman (Gibsland, La.) scored six points on a pair of treys in 15 minutes with two rebounds. Junior F Me'Khai Taylor (New Orleans, La.) played a season-high 19 minutes and scored a season-best eight points with five rebounds and two steals as he was 3-4 from the floor and 2-4 at the FT line.
Four McMurry players reached double figures led by 20 points apiece from Jalen Cherry and Zack Rygg. Amari Leflore had 17 and Koye Rondeno finished with 10. Jordan Kamga and Jordan Malveaux each had eight points, Jeremiah Talib added five and Dirk Johnson had one point. Cherry grabbed a game-high 22 rebounds for an impressive double-double.
Beverly scored the game's first two points just six seconds in, a sign of things to come for the remainder of the night, but the War Hawks responded with the next eight to take an 8-2 lead at the 17:56 mark. McMurry kept the pressure on and continued to score and extended its lead to double digits for the first time (21-11) at the 13:43 mark following a Leflore trey.
Down 29-18 with 10:37 remaining in the half, the Gents went on a 9-0 run to pull within two points (29-27) with 7:44 left and then a trey by Broussard at the 4:52 mark tied the score at 35-35, capping a 17-6 Centenary run. The Gents then finished then edged the War Hawks 11-10 to finish the half and take a 46-45 lead into the locker room as Beverly finished with 17 points in the first period.
The second half featured three ties and three lead changes and following a 60-60 tie with 14:17 remaining, the Gents went on a 22-11 run capped by a jumper by Braden with 4:05 left to give Centenary its largest lead of the game (82-71) and first double-digit advantage. McMurry, though, responded with a 9-1 run to cut its deficit to 83-80 with only 1:40 remaining in the game. Braden nailed a trey 21 seconds later to make it 86-80 and after Cherry made 1-2 at the FT line, Addison and Broussard each went 2-2 at the FT line over the next minute to make it 90-81.
The Gents held a 92-86 lead with just seconds left but Rondeno was fouled by Broussard beyond the arc and he sank all three FT's to make it a 92-89 game. Broussard was then fouled on the ensuing possession and calmly made both to ice the game and seal the 94-89 road win.
Centenary wraps up the weekend on Sunday against the Schreiner Mountaineers in Kerrville, Texas at NOON.
For more information or to donate to Centenary athletics and the men's basketball program, visit gocentenary.com/gocentenary/C_Club.
See the complete Gents' season schedule here: https://gocentenary.com/sports/mbkb/2025-26/schedule
#GoCentenary #CTheOpportunity
Team Stats
McMurry
| Game Statistics | Centenary (La.) | McMurry |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | (33-61) | (27-66) |
| Field Goal % | 54.1% | 40.9% |
| Rebounds | 27 | 47 |
| Assists | 18 | 16 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 10 |
| Pts off Turnovers | 14 | 0 |
| 2nd Chance Pts | 6 | 16 |
| Pts in the Paint | 24 | 22 |
| Fastbreak Pts | 12 | 3 |
| Bench Pts | 14 | 14 |
