Box Score
SALISBURY, NC – The Livingstone men's basketball team survived a furious comeback attempt by Catawba College Sunday evening as the Blue Bears picked up their first victory of the season, 85-78, over the Indians in the final game of the Highway 52 Tournament.
With the victory the Blue Bears improved to 1-1 on the season while the Indians fell to 1-1. The victory was the first for Livingstone over Catawba since January 2000 and only the second victory for the Blue Bears all-time.
Greg Henry scored a team-high 16 points and grabbed eight rebounds in only 20 minutes on the court. Tyler Johnson recorded his first career double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Trone Jackson also scored in double-figures with 10 points.
Livingstone led 81-70 with 1:14 left in the second half, but Catawba showed that they weren't going to go down quietly. The Indians took eight of the next nine points and were within four with 32 seconds left. Despite the momentum, the Blue Bears hung tough, converting crucial free throws down the stretch to secure the victory.
The first half was a back and forth battle. Catawba ran out to an early 7-2 lead, but Livingstone was able to fight back to within two at 11-9 and then ultimately tie the game at 14-14 and take its first lead of the contest at 16-14.
Livingstone led by as many as five points with 6:57 left in the first half, but Catawba continued to pressure the Blue Bears. The Indians trailed by only one with 1:20 left in the opening half, but the Blue Bears took the final five points of the half and took a 39-35 lead into the locker room.
Junior forward Greg Henry was the leading scorer for the Blue Bears in the first half with eight points while Omar-Ford Bey added six. Senior Darius Cox recorded six rebounds to lead the team.
Catawba came out hot in the second half, going on a 7-1 run over the first 2:35 of the second half to take a 42-40 edge. Livingstone responded quickly running off five straight points to go back up 45-42. Catawba continued to stay within striking distance of the Blue Bears for the majority of the second half.
Livingstone slowly opened its lead to as much as 11 points with 1:14 to go at 81-70 before staving off the Catawba rally to secure the victory.
The Blue Bears finished the contest shooting 40 percent from the floor and 22 percent from beyond the three-point arc. Livingstone dominated Catawba on the glass, winning the rebounding battle 53-28 including 19 offensive boards.
The Blue Bears will now have 18 days before their next competition. Livingstone will welcome Morris College to Trent Gymnasium on December 2 for a 6:30 p.m. contest.
