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Blake Smith

Pippa Passes, KY: The Alice Lloyd College Lady Eagles faced the nationally ranked, and highly regarded, Campbellsville University Tigers on Tuesday night. The hot-shooting visitors got off to a blazing start and held on for a 94-88 victory.

Campbellsville entered the contest ranked 21st in the NAIA DI national poll and 6th in the NCCAA DI national poll and came out determined to prove they were deserving of their lofty ranking, while ALC entered the matchup receiving votes in the NCCAA DI poll, and knew a big win would be a feather in their caps. The atmosphere was definitely set for a big game.

From the tipoff, the Tigers came ready to play as it seemed they could not miss. CU poured in 21 points in the first 4:30 of the opening half to stun the home fans and race out to a quick 21-9 lead; they seemed poised to end the game before it had begun.

Fortunately for the home team, sophomore Blake Smith, and senior guard Austin Crisp, along with assistance from freshman guard Timmy Dalton, and senior center Jake Allen, refused to lie down and began to chip away at the deficit. When the buzzer sounded for intermission, the Eagles trailed 52-46. Considering Campbellsville had drained a blazing 12-19 (63.2%) from downtown in the first half, ALC mentor JR Hammond had to feel better about the score.

In the second half, it would continue to be a tussle as Alice Lloyd refused to go away. The Tigers would bend but would never break as they fought to hold on. They would maintain a lead between 4-10 points. Finally, the Eagles would get within two points with around 4:00 remaining on an offensive rebound bucket by Dalton late in the contest as the crowd went wild.

Campbellsville responded with 4 quick points before ALC’s Smith would answer with a strong drive to shrink the lead to 92-88 with under one minute remaining. CU would then miss two free throws which gave the hosts an opportunity to get within one bucket again, but a put-back attempt by Allen tantalizingly hung on the rim for what seemed like a minute before dropping off. The guests would then ice the game with two free throws from guard Tim Colman.

For the Eagles (7-3), four players reached double figures. They were led in scoring by Smith as the guard scored 20 points on 9-17 field goals. He added 4 rebounds and 3 steals. Dalton contributed 17 points and added 5 rebounds while Crisp shot 6-11 from the field for 14 points while grabbing 4 rebounds and leading the way with 4 assists. Allen finished with 14 points and a team-high 7 rebounds.

Alice Lloyd shot 48.1% (37-77) from the floor and finished 35% (7-20) from behind the arc. They connected on 70% (7-10) from the foul line, and also added 31 rebounds, 13 assists, and 8 steals.

CU, (10-1) was led in scoring by Coleman’s game-high 27 points. His club finished shooting 50.8% (33-65) from the floor and won the game from deep finishing at 53.3% (16-30).They shot 75% (12-16) from the foul line, and also added 27 rebounds, 12 assists, and 6 steals.

ALC returns to the hardwood on Saturday, December 9th, when they journey to Owensboro to face conference foe, Brescia University at a 3:00 pm central time following the women’s matchup at 1:00 pm central. They then close out first-semester play on Tuesday, December 12th in a big conference showdown with the NAIA DII’s 25th ranked Indiana University-Southeast Grenadiers at 4:00 pm. This follows the women’s contest at 2:00 pm.