Another close one, but Eutectics fall short against Williams Baptist

WALNUT RIDGE, AR – This is becoming an all too familiar feeling for the Eutectics. Another conference game in which the Eutectics played close, but when push comes to shove it is another game where UHSP comes up just short. Saturday afternoon it was the same old story this time against Williams Baptist as the Eagles held on for an 87-84 triumph for their 12^th straight win over the Purple and Gold.

With under five minutes left in the game, Brock Davis gave the visitors a 72-71 lead and they extended the lead to three with a pair of Ahian Barnett foul shots with 4:50 left to go. But the Eagles scored 17 points over the course of the final 4:35 to come away with the win. WBU scored nine points on three triples during that final push as Charles Brown Jr. scored eight of those final 17 points for Williams Baptist.

After the game was tied at 39-39 at halftime, UHSP came back from a seven-point deficit early in the second half to eventually tie it back up at 65-65 with 7:53 left. Jas Suvalija had a game-high 23 points in the loss, but it was hit back-to-back threes that got the Eutectics right back in the game in the second half. Suvalija knocked down a pair from deep in a :32 second span to bring the margin to three at 58-55 and Dwight Newsome tied the game at 65-all with a layup.

The Eutectics got off to a bit of a rough start in this one, albeit it not in the opening minutes. The Purple and Gold have endured lengthy scoreless stretches in various games this season and they suffered through another one in this game in the first half. The Eagles scored the game's first seven points, but Greg Anderson drilled a three and USHP only trailed by three at 15-12, 6:03 into the game. That is when Williams Baptist ripped off 15 points in a row over a 4:53 span to put the Eutectics in a 30-12 hole. UHSP responded though in the final minutes of the half to eventually get things tied headed to the locker room. Suvalija had 14 of the Eutectics final 27 points of the half and they eventually knotted things up on a Yigit Ekinci layup with :29 seconds left in the half.

Ahian Barnett scored 20 points for the Eutectics along with four rebounds, seven assists and four steals as he and Suvalija combined to go 10-for-20 from distance. Brock Davis added 18 points and six boards as the UHSP starters had all but ten of the Eutectics' points in the game. WBU had five players in double figures led by EJ Johnson who scored 20 points and had ten rebounds. Amarion Wilson had 14 points and ten assists. Each team made 31 field goals as WBU went 14-for-28 from three while UHSP was 11-of-32. The Eutectics did win the rebound battle 36-33, but UHSP had 21 turnovers to 14 for the Eagles.

It will be a short turnaround for the Eutectics (5-7, 0-6 AMC) who have now dropped seven in a row. They will try to end that slide when they host the Bethel Wildcats on Tuesday back in St. Louis. Tip-off is at 5:00pm at the UHSP Gymnasium. The Wildcats have won ten straight against UHSP dating back to the 1999 season.