HENDERSON, Tenn. - The Freed-Hardeman Lions are continuing to reverse the second-half trend that caused them trouble just weeks ago.
FHU outscored Mid-Continent (Ky.) University 51-31 in the second half, coming back from an 11-point halftime deficit to post a 79-70 win over the Cougars on Saturday afternoon at the Sports Center.
The win was the third straight for the Lions (11-7, 4-1), who kept pace with conference leaders Union (Tenn.) and Trevecca Nazarene (Tenn.) in the loss column. Both teams have played more conference games to this point than have the Lions.
Early on, it was the Cougars (10-10, 3-3) who dictated the pace and style of play, using their physical brand of basketball to keep FHU out of rhythm offensively and go on a 20-5 run that turned a tied game into a 33-18 MCU lead with 5:30 left in the first half.
The Lions were able to cut the deficit down to five points over the next three minutes, but Mid-Continent scored the final six points of the half to take a 39-28 lead into the locker room.
The second half, however, saw FHU come out with a greater intensity on defense, taking away the Cougars' dribble penetration while getting back into an offensive rhythm. The result was a 17-7 run to open the half as the Lions pulled within a point at 46-45 with 16:32 left.
Freed-Hardeman finally took its first lead since early in the game on a layup by Kyle Teichmann, helping to kick-start a 17-2 run that saw the Lions take a 62-50 lead with 9:50 to play. FHU still led by 12 at the 3:44 mark before Mid-Continent used a pair of 3-pointers to get within six points with 1:15 remaining.
But the Lions made 7-of-8 from the foul line down the stretch, including 5-of-6 from Ken Bingham, to keep the Cougars from making a serious run at the lead.
Bingham continued his solid play, scoring 22 points to go along with six rebounds. Zack Frey added 19 points while Logan Greer had 15 points and Jesse Moulton had 10. Anthony Sampson tied his career-high in assists with 11, the second time in five games the sophomore has recorded that number.
For the third game in a row, the Lions knocked down double-digits in 3-pointers by going 10-for-25 from behind the arc. FHU is shooting 42.7 percent from 3-point range in its last three games.
Freed-Hardeman looks to pick up a half-game in the TranSouth standings on Monday when it hosts Blue Mountain (Miss.) College at 8:00 PM. Union and Trevecca are both idle.
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