THOMASVILLE, Ga. – The Thomas University Men's basketball team kept nipping at the heels of RV Southeastern throughout the majority of the contest, but a late scoring run from the Fire and missed chances from the Night Hawks would cost TU the game, falling to the Red, Black, & White 76-65 Saturday evening at TU Gymnasium.
 
Despite the score line, Thomas (5-4, 1-2 SUN) finished the day shooting 43.9% from the field and 36.8% from outside the perimeter, its third-highest mark of the season.  The Night Hawks also set a new record for fewest turnovers under Head Coach TJ Rines with just eight.
 
Senior Guard Tim Williamson posted his third, consecutive double-digit performance, tallying 18 points from shooting 50% from the floor and picking up five boards.  Graduate Guard Reggie Wright had a breakout performance, recording 15 points while shooting 60% overall and from outside the arch.
 
Both teams exchanged 3-Ptrs. to start the contest before the Green & White took its first lead with a jumper from Fifth-year Forward DeSean Enzor.  After Southeastern (6-0, 3-0 SUN) tied the contest 5-5, its next possession ended with a steal from Senior Guard Jordan Booker that led to Senior Guard Trint Bryant's fourth home dunk of the season to retake a 7-5 lead for TU.
 
After the Night Hawks tied the contest 11-11 at the 13:04 mark, SEU proceeded to string together a 9-2 run over the next two and a half minutes to go ahead 20-13.  The seven-point would only last for a short time, as Thomas spent the next five minutes building a 15-8 run to tie the game at 28 apiece with 5:41 in the first half.
 
After a pair of good free throws from Senior Guard Toriano Lewis deadlocked the contest at 32 with 3:53 remaining, Redshirt Junior Keon Williams checked into the contest and immediately made a scoring impact: a 22-foot shot that put TU ahead 35-32.  SEU would end the half with a pair of baskets to hold a slim 36-35 lead.
 
The Fire began the second half maintaining a one-possession lead until a Bryant 3-Ptr. once again tied the game (42-42) at the 16:57 mark.  Both sides would exchange another 3-Ptr. score apiece before Mykhalio Yagodin canned a critical trey that gave Southeastern its critical one-possession lead with 14:46 left.
 
Thomas would tie the contest one last time (52-52) with a trey from Booker before a jumper from SEU's Ralph Diaz put the Fire in front for good with 10:27 left.
 
Trailing 64-61 under the five-minute mark, the Night Hawks would draw a few fouls that gave the team a chance to close the deficit but critical 1-and-1 misses allowed the Fire to regroup and build its lead to double digits for the first time at the 2:38 mark.  While Williamson hit both free throws to cut the lead back down to eight (71-63) following a SEU foul, Gorman's corner 3-Pt. dagger on the Fire's next possession clinched a double-digit lead for the remainder of the contest en route to a 76-65 win.
 
TU by the Numbers
3:        Consecutive Games Tim Williamson has shot 50% or better
4:        Night Hawks that shot 50% or better
7:        Team 3-Ptrs. Made
8:        Team Turnovers (Fewest mark since January 2019)
30:      Rebounds
65:      Total Points
 
Up next, TU will take a break from SUN Conference play to partake in Reinhardt University's Thanksgiving classic, beginning with the William Carey Crusaders Friday for a 5 p.m. tipoff.
 
For up-to-date information on games 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.