THOMASVILLE, Ga. – The Thomas University Men's basketball team saw more shooting opportunities than Southeastern, both long-range and inside the arch, but struggled to convert on a regular basis, as the Night Hawks were defeated 89-69 at the hands of RV Southeastern Saturday afternoon in the team's conference opener.
 
Thomas (0-4, 0-1 TSC) took twice as many long-range chances (33) than their conference rivals that specialize in the 3-Point game, but the Night Hawks only converted just 27.3% of those shots on the day, going 2-for-15 in the first half.  For the fourth straight game, the Hunter Green & White saw better numbers as a whole in the second half, shooting 43.8% from the field and 38.9% outside the arch.
 
The Night Hawks came in flying the first minute of play, jumping out to a quick 5-0 lead.  SEU's (4-0, 1-0 TSC) offense was subdued, as the team from Lakeland, Fla. did not see its first lead until 15:07 in the first half when a Riley Minix jumper put Southeastern up 13-12. 
 
Thomas kept the Fire in check for nearly the first ten minutes of the game, exchanging baskets, until SEU fired things up, shooting out to a 12-0 scoring run that began with 11:27 in Half 1 and lasted 2:15.  The Fire would not see its lead extinguish for the rest of the game, as the team continued to build its lead to 37-20 at halftime.
 
Despite seeing its lead vanish, the Night Hawks shut down the NAIA's 16th best long-range shooting team to an astounding 28.6% in the first half.
 
As TU saw its second-half scoring swagger come to fruition, the Fire also turned on its scoring performance, outscoring the Hunter Green & White 52-49.  SEU would maintain its double-digit lead to ultimately prevail 89-69.
 
Junior Forward Keon Williams came off the bench putting up 20 points on the day, while tallying four rebounds and two steals.  Williams shot 41.2% from the field, including 33% from outside the arch.  Junior Guard Jordan Booker led all players in Steals with five on the day, while adding 13 points and six boards.  Junior Guard Tim Williamson also tallied 13 points, going 4-for-7 from the field.
 
The Night Hawks are back on the court Thursday night, as the team travels to Babson Park and pay an annual visit to the confines of the Sabbagh Athletic Center to face the Webber International Warriors.  Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
 
For up-to-date information on this game and other TU Athletics, visit http://www.TUNightHawks.com. Stay up-to-date with news, scores, photos, game summaries, play-by-play, and feature stories of your TU men's basketball team by following them via Twitter at @NightHawksMBKB.