William Carey delivered one of the most electrifying comebacks in program history Thursday night inside a roaring Clinton Gymnasium, storming back from a 22-point deficit to stun UT-Southern, 89–75.
"Tennessee Southern definitely wanted it more than we did for the majority of the first half, but we did pick it up on both ends for the final 6 or so minutes," said Head Coach Steve Knight. "We were very intense the second half and created turnovers with our press and shot it very well. Really proud of our resilience and for creating havoc with our defense in the second half."
The Firehawks came out blazing, opening with a corner three from Antonio Cochran before De'Marreon Baldwin piled on with a flurry of jumpers and a layup to make it 16–2 by the first media timeout. Carey finally stopped the early avalanche with a jumper from Malik Franklin, but UT-Southern kept pouring it on, stretching the margin to 30–8 midway through the half with a Cochran three at the seven-minute mark pushing the lead to 35–16.
Slowly, the Crusaders began to find their rhythm. Franklin ignited the comeback, catching fire from deep with three straight three-pointers, slashing the deficit to 41–31 with two minutes left. He added a fourth triple moments later, and Makeem Roberts nailed another from long range to make it 41–36. Baldwin managed a late jumper to give UT-Southern a 43–36 halftime edge, but momentum was shifting.
Carey came out of the locker room on a mission. In the opening three minutes, layups from Jamar Jenkins and Randarius Hughes—paired with a deep bomb from Javeon Gordon—erased the deficit and tied the game at 45–45. Seconds later, Gordon buried another three to give the Crusaders their first lead of the night at 48–45.
UT-Southern briefly countered with a transition three from Mike Bell, but that would be their last gasp. A smooth jumper from Jenkins lit the fuse on a full-blown Carey eruption. Over the next six minutes, Jenkins and Gordon turned the gym into their personal shooting gallery, raining in threes as Carey torched the Firehawks with a 19–3 knockout run to seize a commanding 69–51 lead.
With UT-Southern reeling, Carey shifted gears and dominated the interior. Hughes powered home back-to-back buckets, and Troy Dunn added a pair of free throws to stretch the lead to 75–55 with eight minutes left. From there, the Crusaders never looked back, controlling the pace and sealing a dramatic, emphatic victory.
Five Crusaders scored in double figures, led by Jenkins' 19 points. Franklin followed with 13, while Roberts, Hughes, and Gordon each chipped in 12.
Roberts also delivered the night's historic moment, recording six steals to reach 104 on the season—breaking Dexter Pugh's 28-year-old school record for most steals in a single year.
William Carey wraps up the regular season on Saturday, February 21, hosting Blue Mountain Christian at 2:00 p.m
