COLUMBIA, S.C – The CIU men's basketball team (5-2) played their final home game before Christmas Friday as they hosted Bryan College (5-2) in an afternoon contest. CIU has not had much luck versus the Lions when they play Bryan before the holidays. The Rams lost to the Lions in November 2019 and December 2018 but were able to come up with a different result in 2020. After a gritty overtime contest, the Rams were able to finally knockoff the pesky Lions, 79-70.

How It Happened:

First Half: BC 48 CIU 45: It was an ugly first half for CIU as the Rams had a poor shooting performance. CIU shot 13-34 from the field and 3-16 from beyond the arc. The Rams also recorded seven turnovers in the half but had a bright spot in junior Brandon Doss. Doss was 5-8 from the field leading CIU with 12 points. CIU still trailed 48-45 heading into halftime.

Second Half: CIU 65 BC 65: The Rams lagged behind the Lions the entire half until Skyler McKinney tied the game with 5:38 remaining at 57-57. Jalen Brinson would then play a key role down the stretch for CIU. Trailing by two-points near the 3:00 minute mark, Brinson scored inside to tie the game at 61-61. Moments later with CIU down 65-63, Brinson drew contact with :06 remaining and calmly went to the line to sink two free throws to send the game into overtime.

OT: CIU 79 BC 70: The Rams turned to familiar faces to put the game away in the extra period. Junior Eric Graham scored seven points in the overtime while AAC leading scorer Corey Benton chipped in four points and Jalen Brinson wreaked havoc defensively against the Lions guards. CIU was able to dribble out the clock and move to 4-2 in the AAC with the win.  

Game Notes:

• Despite a difficult day shooting the ball, Corey Benton still scored 21 points and was one rebound short of a double-double with nine boards. Benton was excellent from the charity stripe going 6-7.
• Eric Graham came off the bench to score 18 points and was crucial to Ram's success in overtime.
• Brandon Doss had the best shooting day for CIU as the junior went 6-10 from the field to score 15 points.
• Skyler McKinney contributed 15 points to the Rams cause while Elijah Spalding was a defensive force with 3 blocks.
• Despite a poor offensive showing, CIU was stalwart defensively, forcing 22 turnovers.
• CIU has played five extra periods (including a double-overtime game at Truett McConnell) through just six games, which totals more overtime periods than the last two seasons combined.

What Coach Stockman is saying:

"It wasn't pretty, but a win is a win. This game showed us that we still have a long way to go until we are the team that we want to be."

Up Next:

CIU will head up to Lynchburg, Virginia on Saturday to challenge Liberty University in an NCAA exhibition contest.