MOUNT BERRY, Ga. – The Millsaps men's basketball was unable to handle SAA-leading Berry College, falling 89-72 in the regular-season finale inside the Cage Center on Sunday.
Junior Dakota Gasca led the Majors with 18 points, four steals, and quad of rebounds, while also setting a season high of six assists.
The West Monroe, La., native played in 32 minutes on the court and shot 6-for-13 from the floor and 5-for-7 at the free-throw line.
Graduate TJ Hogan career highs of 16 points and four steals. The Hattiesburg, Miss., product shot an impressive 6-for-10 from the floor and 3-of-4 from beyond the arc, while grabbing three rebounds.
Junior Caleb Kent scored 15 points, shooting 7-for-13 from the field. He also contributed four rebounds and one steal.
Senior Nicholas Ughovwa accumulated 13 points, four blocks, two steals, and seven rebounds. The forward shot 6-for-12 from the interior.
Millsaps outscored Berry (17-8, 10-2 SAA), 46-38 from points inside the paint while leading, 15-10 in fastbreak points. The Majors took a narrow 20-18 lead in points off turnovers. The Vikings shot 46.4 percent (13-for-28) from long range to help create separation.
Ughovwa scored the first points for the Majors and followed with a block.
A pair of three-pointers propelled the Vikings ahead by six points. Moments later, a Hogan three-pointer narrowed the deficit to two, bringing the score to 11-9.
An Ugovwa jumper in the paint tied the game at 11-11.
Both teams fought fiercely and with 9:25 remaining in the first half, Berry increased their lead to 23-13.
The Vikings maintained a lead over the Majors,as a free throw provided the hosts with their largest advantage of the first half, extending it to 12 points at 40-28.
Sophomore Cameron Lumar (three rebounds, one steal) concluded the first half with a successful free throw, making it 40-29.
In the second half, Berry steadily built its lead and held their largest advantage of the contest at 19 points. The score became 87-68 with 3:22 remaining.
The hosts maintained their advantage for the remainder of the matchup, securing an 89-72 victory in the regular-season finale on Sunday.
Millsaps will now enter the SAA Men's Basketball Tournament as the No. 6 seed and will face No. 3 Centre in the First Round in Danville, Ky., on Sunday, Feb 23. The matchup will begin at 2 p.m. CT with live video and live stats provided at gomajors.com.
To keep up to date with everything surrounding the Millsaps men's basketball program follow the Majors on Twitter and Instagram, like Millsaps Majors Athletics on Facebook or visit gomajors.com.
Founded in Jackson, Mississippi in 1890, Millsaps College is a national liberal arts college dedicated to academic excellence, open inquiry and free expression, the exploration of faith to inform vocation and the innovative shaping of the social, economic and cultural progress of our region. Consistently ranked as one of the best values in higher education, Millsaps has been praised by Colleges That Change Lives, The Princeton Review, Forbes Magazine, U.S. News & World Report, The John Templeton Foundation, and The Fiske Guide to Colleges.
