Box Score
FERRUM, Va. — Not even a career night by senior
Brandon Malone could help Averett overcome a dismal start against Ferrum College. But it came pretty close. Malone led a furious comeback in the final minutes, but the Cougars fell just short in a 59-57 road loss to the Panthers on Wednesday.
Averett (6-11, 3-3 USA South), which shot below 30 percent for most of the game, found itself in a 44-32 hole with 9:14 left in the game. That's when Malone put the Cougars on his back, scoring eight points in a 12-2 Averett run that trimmed Ferrum's lead to 46-44 with 5:21 to play.
With 1:43 remaining, Malone hit a pair of free throws to put Averett ahead 52-51 — the Cougars' first lead since a 6-5 advantage midway through the first half. After the two teams traded points, Malone put Averett in front 57-56 with a 3-pointer with 30 seconds to play.
The Averett lead was once again short-lived as Derek Mitchell's jumper with 13 seconds to go put Ferrum (9-9, 3-3 USA South) back in front by one. After a timeout, Averett had a chance to regain the lead, but a turnover gave the ball back to the Panthers with 2.6 seconds left. Mitchell hit another free throw at the other end to give Ferrum a two-point lead and the Cougars couldn't get off a last second shot as the Panthers escaped with the narrow victory.
Mitchell missed the first meeting between the two schools — a 69-61 win by Averett on Jan. 6 — but the sophomore capitalized this time around with a team-high 24 points and 13 rebounds. J.T. Edwards added 22 points for the Panthers.
Malone's career-high 28 points surpassed his previous best total of 21 points against Christopher Newport University on Feb. 17, 2008. Twenty-one of Malone's points came in the second half. Senior
Mike Miller chipped in with eight points for the Cougars.
Averett bounced back from a rough first half in which the Cougars made just three field goals. However, they only trailed 22-17 at halftime.
The Cougars will look to rebound from the loss when they travel to N.C. Wesleyan College on Saturday for a 4 p.m. tipoff.