By Tyvez Monroe and Cameron Windley |Sports writersAugusta University men’s basketball team routed hometown rival Paine College on Saturday, Dec. 7 at Christenberry Fieldhouse. The Jags won 98-68 and improved to 5-3 on the season, finishing their non-conference schedule. Paine still has yet to win a game in six outings this season.Earlier, in the women's game, Kennedi Manning scored 18 points and grabbed seven rebounds to lead AU to a 71-61 win over the Lions.In the men's tilt, the action was slow at the start, but the Jags would eventually start to pull away. Senior Rafael Monteiro scored on a layup to break an early tie and start an AU run. Troy Cracknell drained a key jumper to spearhead a 19-2 spurt going for the Jags, who scored 12 in a row during that outburst.In the second half, Augusta continued the offensive onslaught. The Jags held a 71-46 lead halfway through the final half. After the home squad stretched the lead to 18, the Jags shifted to a more open style of play, bringing in fresh players to keep the game out of reach.Sophomore Tyshaun Crawford played his best game for AU. Crawford, a 7-footer, led the Jags in scoring with 18 points on the night. He also notched a double-double with 10 rebounds. Monteiro was second in scoring with 17 points, while Cracknell managed 14. Darren Lucas-White added 11 points for the Jaguars.As a team, the Jags shot 37 of 72 (51.4 percent) from the field, and they made 20 of 31 from the line. Augusta nabbed 45 rebounds in the contest, while snatching 10 steals. The Jaguars had a huge advantage in turnovers, forcing 20 and only committing six. And it was a night where every able bodied player on the roster played and scored."I was pleased, especially during exams, where everybody gets to play," said AU Coach Dip Metress. "That's huge. The guys coming off the bench made shots."Jack Johnson, the sophomore post player, scored six points, all on reverse layups. Demetrius Davis had five points on only two shots, including a trey.Metress, in his 16th season in Augusta, tied Marvin Vanover for first place on the careers win list at AU with 343.Keyon Faulkner led the Lions with 17 points.In the women's game, the Jags came out of the gate blazing as they had a 13-2 lead on the Lions in the first quarter. The Lions, however, came back at the end of the first quarter and they cut the Jags lead to only 3. In the second quarter, the Lions offense was very fluid and efficient as it was a back and forth between both teams and the Jags lead 35-33 against the Lions at halftime. Manning played very well in the second quarter for the Jags.In the third quarter, Manning hit a jumper to rejuvenate the Jags, and they rode that momentum as the quarter ended with the Jags up 53-48 on the Lions. In the fourth quarter, the Jags pulled away as they open up the quarter with an uncontested layup, and the home team score six unanswered points. The Jags' defense was suffocating the Lions as the lead was up to 8 in the Jags favor. The Jags ran away with the game late in the fourth as they lead the largest of the night with a 13 point lead over the Lions. The Lions hit a three at the buzzard to shrink the lead to only 10 points. The Jags defeated the Lions 71-61.Manning got plenty of help from Zairya West with 17 points and Kiera Howard, who had 12 points, seven assists, four rebounds and three steals. Crystal Corley added 11 points and five rebounds for the AU (3-5). The Lions (3-4) were led by Keondra Archie with a game-high 25 points.The Jaguar women shot 47.5 percent from the field, well above their 33-percent average coming into the contest. They also forced 24 turnovers and had 17 of their own.After a week off for exams, the Jaguars will be back at at Christenberry to begin Peach Belt play on Dec. 19 when they host Georgia Southwestern at 7:30 p.m. Women's contest will start at 5:30.
Contact Tyvez Monroe at tmonroe@augusta.edu.