McKenzie, Tenn. -- Harris-Stowe State (Mo.) University shot out of the gates to a 16-4 lead and the Lindsey Wilson College men's basketball team never fully recovered, suffering a 77-70 loss on Saturday in the McDonald's Classic at the Roy N. Baker Fieldhouse on the campus of Bethel (Tenn.) University.
Freshman Kalen Kimberland led the Blue Raiders with 15 points, while junior Kemo Duncan paced the team on the glass with six rebounds.
Harris-Stowe (7-4) was led in scoring by Terry Hollins with 17 points. Ahmadou Fall hauled in a team-high five rebounds for the Hornets.
Harris-Stowe controlled the game in the beginning, using a variety of cuts to the basket to build a 12-point lead (16-4) at the 10-minute mark. Lindsey Wilson (6-5) struggled from the field, finishing the half shooting 34.6 percent.
Harris-Stowe shot 41.4 percent from the field in the half, while also controlling the boards with an 18-13 rebound advantage.
Senior Andrija Tintor scored the Blue Raiders' next point on a free throw which spurred some energy for the Lindsey Wilson offense. Freshman Kalen Kimberland followed the point with a strong drive to the basket for a layup that pulled Lindsey Wilson within nine (18-9).
To continue the comeback, the Blue Raiders started to attack the post where they found enough success to end the half down by just six points (27-21). Juniors Kemo Duncan and Cornell Thomas - playing his first game for the Blue Raiders - led the inside attack in the half with six and four points, respectively.
Lindsey Wilson continued its strong play after the break as senior Eric McPherson found his stride with a layup off a steal by his classmate Joshua Cherry to open the half. Duncan followed the basket with a contested jumper in the paint to claw back within five (30-25).
The Hornets outscored Lindsey Wilson 19-10 over the next five minutes, never allowing the Blue Raiders to lower the lead to less than five points with nine minutes to play in the game.
Harris-Stowe built its largest lead of 18 points (62-44) with five minutes to play.
Although the Blue Raiders forced some turnovers with its press and got late three-pointers from McPherson and sophomore reserve Chase Spreen, they were never able to seriously threaten the Hornets' large advantage.
Lindsey Wilson shot 40.7 percent from the field for the game, while Harris-Stowe hit at a 55.1 clip. The Hornets held the advantage behind the arc as well, knocking down 75.0 percent of its shots (3-of-4) to 26.3 percent (5-of-19) for the Blue Raiders.
Harris-Stowe outrebounded the Blue Raiders 31-24.
Lindsey Wilson returns to action at 7 p.m. CT on Monday, Dec. 14 against Brescia (Ky.) University at Biggers Sports Center. The game is the Blue Raiders first at home since an 87-46 win against Ohio-State Newark on Nov. 20.
