THOMASVILLE, Ga. – On a night of tough shooting and foul trouble for the Fire, the Southeastern University men's basketball team fell on the road to the Thomas University Night Hawks 85-69.
It was a scrappy affair in the early goings tonight, as both teams accumulated a total of 11 turnovers and nine personal fouls within the first ten minutes of play.
The Night Hawks jumped out to a 24-18 lead with 7:48 to go in the first half. However, the Fire responded with a 14-2 run that was fueled by 10 points from senior guard Jalen McCaullum. The IUPUI transfer scored 15 points on the night, the most of his SEU career, with 13 of those points coming in the first half.
The Fire scored 17 points off turnovers in the first half, which led them to a 37-35 halftime lead despite shooting just 33.3% from the field.
Thomas quickly regained the lead within two minutes of play in the second half and never relinquished it. The Night Hawks grew their lead to double digits, leading 55-45 with 10:12 remaining.
The Fire continued to fight and battled back to within one possession three times during the final ten minutes of play. A pair of free throws from junior guard C.J. Reese chipped the deficit to 65-64 with 4:09 remaining.
However, foul trouble down the stretch proved too much for SEU to overcome, as Thomas closed out the final three minutes of play on a 15-2 run, with seven of those points coming at the free throw line.
The whistles were busy in tonight's contest, as both teams combined for a total of 49 personal fouls. The Fire shot 83.3% (25-30) from the charity stripe while the Night Hawks converted 75% (33-44).
Reese led Southeastern with 23 points before fouling out within the final minute of action.
The Fire will look to snap a five game winless streak as they travel home to host the RV St. Thomas University Bobcats on Saturday night. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.
