MOUNT BERRY, Ga. — The Millsaps men's basketball team fought hard against Berry College but was bested by the Vikings, 77-69, inside the Cage Center on Friday night as they gave their all. 

Millsaps College (11-7, 2-5 SAA) was led by a strong bench performance, contributing 31 points. While Berry College (8-10, 4-3 SAA) capitalized on their 15 assists to maintain control throughout the game.

Junior Cameron Lumar led the Majors with 21 points and six rebounds, including three 3-pointers of the night.

Senior Caleb Kent added 13 points and grabbed five rebounds. Junior Davion James scored 11 points, four rebounds, and recorded one block.

Classmate Rodney Phillips Jr. contributed defensively with two steals and six rebounds. 

Millsaps opened the game with a 3-pointer from downtown by Lumar at 18:40 to take a brief lead.

As the matchup continued, both opponents saw an opportunity to compete well against each other, the Vikings would battle in with the help of a three-pointer, a two-point jumper, and a layup to take a 7-3 advantage.   

With 14:51 on the clock, David Combest Jr. would sink in a nifty three-pointer to cut the Majors' deficit by four as they continued to play tough and physically on both ends of the ball.

The Vikings would build their lead to eight tallies, led by a layup and a jumper between 12:27 and 12:01 minutes.  

However, Millsaps would not give up, as Lumar's fastbreak layup towards the rim would shorten the contest by three points.  

Berry's consistent scoring attacked the Majors, including several 3-pointers that helped the Vikings continue their lead. The first half ended with Millsaps trailing 48–39.  

In the second half, Millsaps initiated a strong push, narrowing the gap with Berry through key plays, including Lumar's jumper at 18:30.   

Despite shooting challenges, the Majors maintained pressure, capitalizing on Berry's turnovers, with Kent contributing a layup at 12:31, helped from junior Colt Donley. 

As Millsaps outscored Berry 30-29 in the second half, at 8:34, Berry took their largest lead of the contest by 13 points, 64-51.  

Millsaps turned their attention to James as he connected to the bottom of the nets with a trey to shorten their deficit by six with 45 seconds to go.  

In the final moments of the second half, the Vikings made two shots from the charity stripe, and Lumar placed a layup inside the basket for the Majors however, it was not enough, as the Vikings pulled off the victory, 77-69, on Friday night. 

The Majors will be back in action on Sunday to challenge Oglethorpe University, beginning at 1 p.m. CT in Atlanta, Ga., with live video and live stats provided at gomajors.com. CT with live video and live stats provided at gomajors.com. 
 

To keep up to date with everything surrounding the Millsaps College men's basketball program follow the Majors on X and Instagram, like Millsaps Majors Athletics on Facebook and 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.