CLEVELAND, Tenn. — The most efficient shooter in the Gulf South Conference did as much as he could, but it wasn't enough as Montevallo fell to Lee, 66-58, Thursday night.
Wade Lowman, who entered the game with a 57.7 shooting percentage, scored a game-high 19 points on 7-of-10 shooting, including knocking down five free throws, and brought down four rebounds in 35 minutes of game action. However, Lowman was the lone Falcon (11-10, 7-6) in double figures as
Xavier Malcom and
Jonas Parker both finished with nine points each, while
Ivan Smith chipped in eight.
On the other side, Lee (17-4, 12-2) had four players in double digits with Parker Suedekum leading the way with 13, while Beyuan Hendricks (12), Kentrell Evans (11) and Quay Kennedy (10) rounded out the trio. Ryan Montgomery, who entered Thursday night's game as the conference's second-leading scorer with a 19.9 mark, was held to only two points on 1-of-3 shooting in 23 minutes.
After the two teams traded two-point baskets over the game's first three minutes, Lowman sank a jumper in the paint to give Montevallo a 6-4 lead. It was a lead the Falcons stretched out to as many as nine following a
Romario Spence jumper five minutes later, then again when Lowman converted a free throw opportunity at the 9:43 mark.
Montevallo's lead was ultimately cut to one on the first of two free throws from Hendricks as his second tied the game at 26 with 4:21 left before halftime. Hendricks — to cap a personal 7-0 scoring run — hit a 3-point basket to give Lee a 29-26 advantage.
T.J. Martin hit his own response as he connected on a 3-pointer to tie the game at 31 with just over a minute left to play in the first half. However, Hendricks hit his own 3-pointer to make it 34-31, Lee, heading into the locker rooms. It was a Lee lead that steadily grew throughout the second half as the closest Montevallo got was 37-33 following an
Ivan Smith jumper less than a minute into the second 20-minute period.
Montevallo will look to halt its six-game skid when the Falcons visit Huntsville, Ala., to play the University of Alabama in Huntsville on Saturday, Feb. 8 at 4:00 p.m. CT.
