By Leeroy Francis Jr. |Sports editorIn front of more than 2,000 excited and raucous Richmond County fifth-graders, the Augusta University men's basketball team defeated Emmanuel College 77-70 in Christenberry Fieldhouse on Education Day. AU dominated the Lions early on, leading by as much 20 in the first half before settling for a 47-31 halftime lead and then holding on for the victory.The Lions rallied in the second half to cut the Jaguars' lead to only three with 26.9 seconds left in the game, but the Jaguars converted their free-throw opportunities late to hold on and now have won their first three games at Christenberry this season.The Jaguars (5-2 overall) started hot out of the gate on offense for the second straight game at home, starting on a 25-11 run in the first five minutes of action thanks to great team man-to-man defense and unselfish offense. The Jaguars looked to be in control of the game early, but the Lions kept the game within striking distance, limiting the Jaguars to only 16 points in the final nine minutes of the first half.The Jaguars were led by freshman guard Miguel Arnold from San Juan, Puerto Rico. Arnold, who finished with a team-high 22 points, seemed to be all over the court in the opening 20 minutes for the Jags, scoring 15 points on 4-6 from the field and 3-5 from the three-point line to lead all Jaguars' scorers.Emmanuel College continued to cut into the Jaguar lead starting the second half and looked like a different team in the second half. In the first half for the Lions, it was a one-man show with senior Kendrick Colvin shooting 12 of the teams 24 attempts scoring 20 of the teams 31 total points, but in the second half, the Lions received a little more help from the rest of their backcourt. In a tightly called game where it seemed everything was being called by the referees, neither team could develop an offensive rhythm.The 62-50 lead midway through the second half slowly started to dwindle away, and with a couple of Jaguar turnovers and Emmanuel College three-pointers, the Jaguar lead was only five 69-64 with 3:22 left in the game.The Jaguars and Lions would trade baskets late in the second half, but with 26.9 seconds left the Kendrick Colvin would hit two free throws to cut the Jaguar lead to only three.After the ensuing possessions, the Lions would resort to fouling guard Tyree Myers and then Arnold and make the Jaguars earn their points at the free throw line.The two freshmen would go 5 of 6 from the free throw line in the last 20 seconds to secure the home victory for the Jaguars.The Jaguars made their first 12 free throws, but cooled a bit and finished 20 of 27 from the line."We went 8 of 15 from the free throw line in the second half," said AU Coach Dip Metress. "We could have really separated ourselves. Instead of a two-possession game, it would have been a three- or four-possession game. Still, it was a good game."Myers added 13 points and six assists in the victory. Senior Deane Williams chipped in 11 points, eight rebounds, four assists and three blocked shots. Junior Rafael Monteiro and freshman Darren Lucas-White would evenly split 20 points and combine for 11 rebounds.
Lucas-White continued to play very well on defense with strong ball pressure and had two steals.AU won the rebounding battle 37-33. The Jaguars also shot the ball slightly better (43.6 percent to 42.3 percent). Senior forward Kendrick Colvin led Emmanuel with 35 points, and guard Brandon Simpson added 11 points, three boards and a steal.After a week off for final exams, Augusta's next two games will be on-the-road Peach Belt Conference matchups. AU will travel to Young Harris University (2-5) on Dec. 17 at 11 a.m. and the University of North Georgia (5-2) on Dec. 19 at 3:30 p.m to close out the year.Boxscore: AU 77, Emmanuel 70