LAGRANGE, Ga. -  The Blazers of Belhaven squeaked by the fighting Panthers of LaGrange College by a final of 61-58 in a Collegiate Conference of the South game Wednesday night (Jan. 29) in Historic Mariotti Gymnasium. The heartbreaking defeat dropped the Panthers to 5-15 overall and 1-7 in conference play. The Blazers improved to 16-3 on the season and 6-0 in the conference, retaining the top spot in the CCS standings.

Game Summary 
The Panthers started off hot, taking a quick five-point lead with a flurry of Jace Herrell three's. His nine early points pushed the Panthers to a one-point lead at the game's first media timeout. The score stayed close throughout the early parts of the half, with the game tied at 17 halfway through the first period. Strong Blazer defense made the Panthers force shots, and they struggled, shooting only 30% from the field. The Panthers had strong defense, holding the Blazers to 30 points in the half. LC was led in points by Herrell in the first half with nine, but the star of the half was Micah McAllister. The Newnan, Ga native had five points, two rebounds, three steals and an assist as his hustle plays all around Mariotti helped keep the Blazer lead at just six at the break. 

The second half produced lots of drama and a nail-biting finish. Both LC and BU struggled coming out of halftime, keeping the game at a five-point Blazer advantage with just eight minutes to play. Belhaven then went on a huge run, extending the lead to 13 with just three minutes left. The Panthers fought valiantly, however, cutting the lead to six with 90 seconds to go. With outstanding full-court defense and a Samuel Moss triple, LaGrange cut the lead to three with just 30 seconds remaining. LC then fouled Belhaven's Jordan Marshall, who missed both free throws and gave the Panthers a chance.

Missed three's by Kameron McCall and McAllister in the waning moments made the heartbreak even more agonizing, as LC dropped back-to-back conference contests. Both teams had shooting struggles all night, with both teams shooting under 35% and under 30% from behind the arc. The Blazers prevailed at the line, shooting 21 of 31, while LC only went 12 of 18 on the night. The Panthers fought valiantly against the league leaders but came up just a few buckets short. 
 
Panther of the Game 
Samuel Moss was spectacular for the Panthers, leading the team with 19 points, 15 coming in the second half, in addition to two rebounds and a block as well. The former All-Conference guard will look to continue his hot run down the stretch for LaGrange. 
 
Up Next  
The Panthers return for their fifth and final game of their homestand on Tuesday (Feb. 4) in a non-conference bout against Pensacola Christian College. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. at Historic Mariotti Gymnasium with links to stream the game live stats found here.