NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Auburn University at Montgomery Warhawks men's basketball team (2-5, 0-1) led by 10 points early in the second half, but the Warhawks were unable to hold off the Trevecca Nazarene Trojans (5-1, 1-0) Thursday night, as the Trojans rallied to knock off AUM, 67-63, at Trojan Fieldhouse in both teams' Gulf South Conference opener.

AUM was up 42-32 after a Chappelle Whitney basket with 17:21 to go, but the Trojans chipped away at the Warhawks' advantage before taking the lead for good on a three-point play by Da'Shon Fisher that made it 56-55 TNU with 5:29 remaining.

AUM tied the game at 58 on a 3-pointer by Marius Canery with 4:21 showing on the clock, and the Warhawks later had chances to tie the game or take the lead, but their shots were off the mark and the Trojans were able to pull out a hard-fought home conference win.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
AUM scored the first eight points of the game and raced out to a 17-5 lead after a layup by Whitney with 11:12 to go in the first half, but Trevecca Nazarene didn't let the Warhawks run away and hide. The Trojans went on a 12-0 run over a span of 5:50 to tie the game at 17 following a Jake Mulder free throw with 5:22 remaining before halftime.
 
The Warhawks immediately retook the lead on three free throws by Whitney and the teams went back-and-forth for the final four-plus minutes of the first half. Jamarious Martin nailed a three-pointer with about 30 seconds left to send AUM into the locker room with a 34-30 lead at the break.
 
AUM was 12-for-36 (33.3 percent) from the field in the first half, including 4-for-14 (28.6 percent) on three-pointers. The Warhawks made six of their seven free throws (85.7 percent) and outrebounded Trevecca, 25-18, in the opening 20 minutes. AUM also won the turnover battle, forcing the Trojans to commit seven turnovers, while only turning the ball over four times itself.
 
Whitney led AUM with 12 points and Martin added seven as the Warhawks had six players score three or more points in the first half.
 
Trevecca Nazarene went 12-for-31 (38.7 percent) shooting overall, making 4-of-18 three-point shots (22.2 percent). The Trojans made two of their four free throws (50 percent) and were led in scoring by Fred Bailey's eight points, four rebounds and three assists. Brett Wright scored six points and Jax Abernathy pitched in five for TNU in the first half.
 
Second Half
AUM opened the second half with an 8-2 run to open up the 10-point lead at 42-32 before Trevecca spent the middle part of the half closing the gap before finally taking the lead on Fisher's three-point play. Canery's trey got AUM back to a 58-all tie, but four straight points by the Trojans gave TNU a 62-58 advantage with 2:55 remaining.
 
The Warhawks got to within 64-63 on a basket by Colby Williams with 1:21 still to go, and AUM forced Trevecca into a missed shot on its next possession, grabbing the rebound and having a chance to take the lead. However, AUM missed its shot and TNU got the rebound.
 
Abernathy was fouled and made two free throws to put the Trojans up, 66-63, with 21 seconds left, and the Warhawks missed a 3-point shot to tie the game on their next possession. Trevecca got the rebound and finished off the win from there.
 
NOTABLES

• The Warhawks finished the game 23-for-65 (35.4 percent) from the field, making 7-for-26 (26.9 percent) from three-point range. AUM made 10 of its 16 free throws (62.5 percent) and the battle of the boards was even at 47 rebounds apiece. The Warhawks forced Trevecca into 17 turnovers, but they led to just six points for AUM. Meanwhile, AUM had 15 turnovers that led to 12 points for the Trojans.
• Whitney finished with 22 points and five rebounds to lead AUM. Martin had 13 points and eight assists, and Jayden Doyle chipped in eight points and eight rebounds before fouling out late in the game.
• Trevecca Nazarene was 21-for-64 (32.8 percent) overall, going 7-for-36 (19.4 percent) from 3-point range. The Trojans also made 18 of their 30 free-throw attempts (60 percent) and were led in scoring by Abernathy, who scored 22 points (17 in the second half).
• Bailey finished with 14 points, seven rebounds, five assists and two steals, and Fisher added nine points and four rebounds for the Trojans.

 
UP NEXT
The Warhawks continue their conference-opening roadtrip, traveling to Cleveland, Tenn., to take on Lee University (4-1, 1-0) on Saturday afternoon. Tipoff for the game is scheduled for 3 p.m. CT, and if you can't make it to Cleveland to support the Warhawks in person, the game will be streamed live on FloCollege.



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