JACKSONVILLE, Texas – No. 9 seed Blinn College men's basketball was able to shake off a sluggish start to storm back and outscore No. 8 seed Lamar State College – Port Arthur by 29 points in the second half to win 75-65 in the opening round of the Region XIV tournament at John Alexander Gymnasium.
The Buccaneers keep their season alive with the victory and improve to 18-13 overall on the season. Blinn will next face top-seeded San Jacinto College-Central on Thursday, March 9 at 1 p.m. in Jacksonville.
"I thought that our players kept executing the game plan even when it wasn't working early on," said Scott Schumacher, Blinn head coach. "We played a really good second half of basketball and I thought the team did a good job of getting the ball into James Harrison."
Harrison put on a show in the second half and finished with 20 points to lead the way. Juwan Green added 19 points while LaKendric Hyson chipped in 15 in the victory.
Blinn struggled to begin the game as Port Arthur jumped out to a 20-12 lead and then stretched that lead to 32-20 late in the first half. The Buccaneers fought back to get the game within 10 points and only trailed 35-26 at the break.
Blinn started to show more life in the second half and started to chip away at the Port Arthur lead with Harrison leading the way. The Buccaneers cut the lead down to five in the first five minutes and then cut the lead down to 42-41 with 13:31 left.
Blinn took its first lead of the second half with 7:17 left and then stretched that lead out to 63-59 with 1:40 left. Port Arthur tried to foul but Blinn was able to hit its free throws. The Buccaneers made 26-of-28 free throws for a 93 percent clip for the game to help close out the 10-point victory.
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 34 NJCAA national championships since 1987. For more information, visit www.buccaneersports.com.
About Blinn College
With an enrollment of 19,422 students, Blinn ranks among the nation's leaders in transferring students to leading four-year universities and has received national recognition for affordable educational excellence. For more information, visit www.blinn.edu.
