Box Score
JACKSON – After an amazing run to qualify for the 2010 SCAC Tournament, the Millsaps College men’s basketball team could keep the magic alive as it took a four-point lead into halftime but were outscored 40-21 in the second half as Centre College rallied for the opening-round victory Friday afternoon at The Hangar Dome, 64-49.
Senior guard
Blake Martinez, the SCAC Player-of-the-Week this past week got the Majors going in the first half with 14 points to lead all scorers at the break but the Colonels’ defense shut him down in the second half holding him to zero points on 0-for-7 shooting.
Centre took advantage of its size down low and outscored the Majors 32-8 in the paint.
Senior
Cameron Varnado opened the scoring for Millsaps with a jumper assisted by
Brian Merkel.
Danny Noll promptly hit a 3-pointer for Centre to take a 3-2 lead as the teams battled for control of the game early in the contest.
With the Colonels leading 22-19 with less than seven minutes to play in the opening stanza, the Majors closed the half on a 9-2 run to take a 28-24 advantage into the break.
Centre turned up the intensity on defense to open the second half and turned the momentum in its favor as it claimed a 35-30 lead behind an 11-4 run.
A 3-pointer by the Majors’
LV Sumler tied the score 35-35 but the Colonels took a 47-40 lead after a 3-point basket by Noll and layup from Alex Lloyd.
Chris Ingle converted a layup in the low post with seven minutes to play cutting the lead to three but that would be all the closer the Majors would get as Centre controlled the game until the final buzzer.
The Colonels held Millsaps scoreless for the final 5:18 of the game and scored 12 points in that same span to close the game 64-49 and advance into Saturday’s semifinals where they will face Trinity University at 1 p.m.
Sumler led the Majors scoring with a career-high 16 points –13 in the second half—while Martinez finished with 14 and Ingle hit double-figures adding 10 points.
Noll paced all scorers with 17 points for Centre while Josh Crawford and Lloyd reached double-figures scoring 13 and 10 points, respectively.
Millsaps finished the season 12-14 with the loss while Centre improved to 15-8 with the victory in the quarterfinals.
This game would mark the final time seniors Martinez, Varnado and Ingle step onto the hardwood at The Hangar Dome after stellar careers for the purple and white.