Eagles Fall on the Road at Truett McConnell

CLEVELAND, Ga. — Reinhardt Men's Basketball stayed within striking distance for a half before Truett McConnell pulled away after the break, handing the Eagles a 90-68 road loss on Wednesday night at Benjamin F. Brady Arena. The Bears outscored Reinhardt 53-36 over the final 20 minutes, proving the difference in the game.

The Eagles trailed just 37-32 at halftime after weathering Truett McConnell's early shooting and responding with timely scoring of their own. Tee Williams provided a spark in the opening stretch, knocking down two free throws at the 17:57 mark of the first quarter to give Reinhardt a 7-5 lead. The Bears answered with a series of runs, but Reinhardt stayed close until a late layup by Omari Joseph in the closing seconds of the half nudged the Truett advantage to five at the break.

The turning point came early in the second half as Truett McConnell's perimeter shooting and interior efficiency shifted the game's tempo. Preston Tuggle drilled a 3-pointer with 17:50 remaining to push the Bears' lead to 44-36, and from there the Eagles played from behind.

Reinhardt's offense never fully matched Truett McConnell's rhythm, finishing 22-of-58 (37.9%) from the field and 4-of-16 (25.0%) from 3-point range. The Eagles did their best work at the stripe, going 20-of-28 (71.4%) to generate points in the half-court and limit extended droughts. Defensively, Reinhardt forced 10 steals and held the Bears to 11 turnovers, but Truett McConnell consistently converted quality looks inside and out, shooting 54.1% (33-of-61) overall and 45.0% (9-of-20) from beyond the arc.

Williams paced Reinhardt with an efficient all-around performance, finishing with 16 points and eight rebounds in 28 minutes while going 8-of-10 at the free-throw line. He also added two assists as the Eagles tried to create offense against a rotating Truett McConnell defense. Khalil Cooke provided a major lift off the bench, scoring 12 points in just 12 minutes on 5-of-7 shooting, including 2-of-4 from long range, and adding a steal to energize the Eagles on both ends.

Shooting guard Jackson Sousa was the third player for Reinhardt to get into double-digit scoring with 10 points. He was 2 for 3 from 3-point land and 4 for 9 overall, helping the Eagles stay close in the first half of the game.

Despite the final margin, the Eagles showed stretches of efficient half-court execution and bench productivity that can carry forward into conference play. Reinhardt has just seven games remaining in their AAC schedule, but four of the seven are at home and a good run can get the Eagles back in the upper third of the conference standings. Second place and tenth place in the standings are only separated by two games.

The game scheduled for this Saturday on the road at Milligan has been postponed due to possible bad weather over the weekend throughout the south.  That game will be made up on Monday, February 17th, at Milligan.  The Eagles' next game will be on Wednesday, January 28th, versus Johnson at the Brown Athletic Center in Waleska.