THOMASVILLE, Ga. - Thomas continues Sun Conference (TSC) action Saturday at Ave Maria (Fla.). Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. ET.

In addition to live stats, the contest will be televised online through Stretch Internet. Updates will also be available on Thomas' official men's basketball Twitter account (@NightHawksMBKB).

ABOUT THOMAS

The Night Hawks are coming off a 74-70 win at No. 7 Southeastern (Fla.) on Thursday in conference play. The Night Hawks ended a five-game losing streak inside The Furnace and improved to 2-1 this season, 5-2 in their last seven regular-season games and 3-1 in their last four regular-season road games against Top 25 opponents.

JaVoris Cooks and Johnnel Ginnie each scored 16 points in the win. 

Thursday's win was the highest-ranked opponent the Night Hawks had defeated since taking out former conference member, then-No. 2 Embry-Riddle (Fla.), 77-70, inside TU Gymnasium on Jan. 20, 2015.

Ginnie was 7-of-12 from the floor, including a pair of treys, to go along with eight rebounds. 

Javon Heastie added 12 points in the victory on 4-of-8 shooting, including a 3-of-5 effort from beyond the arc, in his first action this year. Jakari Bush and Katrell Myers each scored nine points. Heastie and Myers combined for 21 of the team's 28 bench points. Jalen Bonds hauled in five boards. D.J. Roulhac dished out four assists.

Thomas shot 41.8 percent (28-of-67) overall and 47.4 percent (9-of-19) from deep but blistered the nets in the final 20 minutes, going 50 percent (15-of-30) from the field and 70 percent (7-of-10) from 3-point range.

The Night Hawks turned 17 Fire turnovers into 22 points.

Southeastern was limited to 38.7 percent (24-of-62) shooting and 27.8 percent (5-of-18) from behind the arc. 

Southeastern was only 10-of-29 from the field in the first 20 minutes and trailed 31-30 at intermission. In a game that featured 10 ties and six lead changes, Thomas' largest advantage of the night, 31-24, came with 1:48 left before halftime following a Cooks steal and trey. The Night Hawks erased a nine-point deficit at the 8:11 mark with a 19-3 scoring barrage in under seven minutes.

The Fire used a 14-5 spurt to take a 45-40 edge with 14:23 to play and led by eight 1:23 later, but Thomas countered with an 8-0 run to tie the game at 50 following consecutive treys from Heastie. A Heastie bucket from distance at the 5:03 mark put his team ahead 63-62, and the Night Hawks never trailed the rest of the way. Southeastern managed just two points in the final 1:32, and Myers twice gave the Green and White a two-possession lead in the final 16 seconds, going 4-of-5 from the line.

The Gyrenes are coming off a 71-68 loss at home to Coastal Georgia on Thursday in conference play, their fifth-straight defeat overall.

With Ave Maria leading by one in the final minute, Coastal Georgia used an old-fashioned 3-point play and a pair of late free throws to edge the Gyrenes.
 
After a sluggish opening few minutes that saw the Mariners jump out to a 9-2 lead, the Gyrenes pulled within one, 13-12, after a 3 by Jonathan Simmons. A couple minutes later, a lay-up by Nemanja Brankov put the Gyrenes up one. Coastal Georgia, which led by as many as 15 in the first half, ended the period on a 17-9 run to take a 42-32 edge into the break.
 
Ave Maria hit a trio of treys in the opening minutes of the second half to close the deficit to four and later tied the game at 49 with 11:15 to play. After a 3 by the Mariners, a 9-0 run capped by a Gianpaolo Riccio trey gave Ave Maria a 58-52 edge. With Ave Maria up 62-54 and 6:07 to play, Coastal Georgia went on a 10-1 run to retake the lead.
 
Stevan Krusevac nailed a 3-pointer with 45 seconds to play to give Ave Maria a two-point edge. On the ensuing Mariner possession, Coastal Georgia converted an old-fashioned 3-point play to give the visitors a 69-68 lead. After a missed basket by Ave Maria, Coastal Georgia knocked down both free throws to make it a three-point game. The Gyrenes got a good look in the final seconds but were unable to convert.
 
Brankov led four Gyrenes in double figures with 16 points. He also tallied 10 rebounds for his third double-double of the season. Riccio tallied his first double-double as a Gyrene with 14 points and 11 rebounds.
 
Ave Maria shot just 39.3 percent from the field and was 10-of-31 from 3. 

Ave Maria is 1-8 at home, having lost seven-straight.

The Gyrenes rank 47th in NAIA Division II in 3-point field goals made (143).

LAST TIME OUT AGAINST THE GYRENES

Thomas won at Ave Maria, 84-58, on Jan. 21, 2017.

Myers led the Night Hawks with 25 points off the bench, shooting a perfect 7-of-7 from the floor and 10-of-11 from the line. Willie Holloway produced a double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Cooks provided 15 points and six rebounds, while Tre Ford added 10 points.

The Night Hawks used a 6-0 run and opened up a 13-7 lead early in the game. Ave Maria responded with a 9-0 run and took a 16-13 advantage, but Thomas ran out to a 33-18 lead due to an 18-0 run in the middle of the first half.

Myers converted a layup that gave the Night Hawks a 48-29 lead with a minute and a half to play, and Thomas led 51-34 lead at the break.

The Gyrenes converted two 3-pointers in the second half and slimmed the deficit to 57-46, but the Night Hawks responded with an 18-1 run and pushed their lead to 75-49.

Thomas shot 48.4 percent (30-of-62) from the floor and 53.8 percent (7-of-13) from behind the 3-point line, including a 5-of-6 clip in the first half. The Night Hawks also held a 39-11 advantage in bench points