CARLINVILLE, IL – The Principia Men's Basketball were on the road on Saturday in nearby Carlinville to take on SLIAC foe, Blackburn College. The Panthers were coming off of a big win at home on Thursday against Westminster, and they were looking for back-to-back victories for the first time this season to improve their 2-5 SLIAC record. The Beavers were coming off of a tough home loss to Webster, but still stood at 4-3 in SLIAC play. This game was even throughout, and although Blackburn would stretch the lead to 9 early in the second half, Principia would remain resilient and fight all the way back. Down by one with 20 seconds left, Jaquan Adams hit a clutch floater that would prove to be the difference as the Panthers came away with the 72-71 road victory.
Blackburn came out aggressive and took a quick 12-6 lead to start the game. Principia would follow that with a quick 6-0 run on three pointers from Kingsley Cockburn and Jaquan Adams to tie the game at 12. Blackburn kept a small lead throughout the first half with Principia able to tie the game once more but never take the lead. AJ Byrd hit 2 free throws going into the break to cut the Beavers lead to 35-32 at halftime.
In the second half, it would again be the Beavers striking first and taking the biggest lead of the game at 43-34 with 16:49 remaining. Principia then went on a quick 8-0 run punctuated by a Shemarri Miles transition lay up to pull within one. Another three pointer from Kingsley Cockburn and a lay up from Isaiah Parker gave Principia their first lead of the game at 53-52 with 11:08 remaining. AJ Byrd would get into the action with two huge threes to push the Panthers lead up to 8 with 6:56 left in the game. Blackburn would strike right back and take the 71-70 lead with 34 seconds remaining. Just like on Thursday, the Panthers put the ball in the hands of their leading scorer, Jaquan Adams, and he would deliver once more. A smooth floater from the right baseline gave Principia the lead 72-71 with 20 seconds left, and then lock down defense by Jordan Williams on the Beavers final possession secured the victory for the Panthers.
Good to Know: This win marks the program's first win at Blackburn since 2017. The Panthers were led as usual by senior Jaquan Adams, who had a monster double-double with 21 points and 14 rebounds. Fellow senior AJ Byrd had his best game of the season with 18 points, including 3 three pointers. Bobby Alford III, Shemarri Miles, Isaiah Parker, and Kingsley Cockburn all had outstanding efforts as well, as Principia moved to 3-5 in the SLIAC.
Up Next: The Panthers have a few days off before hosting Spalding University on Thursday at 7:30 pm in Hay Field House. Spalding is currently 5-3 in the SLIAC, and Principia will be looking to make some more headway in the standings. If you are on campus, come out and support your Panthers!
