Nashville, TN – DeMarcus Sharp scored a team-high 23 points and was followed in the scoring column by a 15-point outing by JaVar Daniel – who made his first collegiate start – but the performances were not enough, as the Austin Peay State University (APSU) basketball team fell to Lipscomb in Atlantic Sun Conference play 91-77, Saturday, at Allen Arena.
Despite a fast start which saw Austin Peay (8-10, 1-2 ASUN) make its first six attempts and shoot over 51 percent from the floor throughout the first half, the APSU Govs were unable to maintain the momentum and had a two-point halftime advantage erased with Lipscomb (11-7, 2-1 ASUN) outscoring the Govs across the final 20 minutes, 52-36.
Sharp scored six of the Govs’ first 12 points, with his last being the final of the aforementioned six-straight shots to begin the game. Sharp’s fourth basket came 3:11 into the contest, but was answered by five-straight Bisons’ points to spark the night’s first of seven lead changes.
After exchanging scores, Lipscomb gained a 26-18 advantage heading into the under-12 media timeout after making seven of their next nine attempts, three of which came from beyond the arc.
Facing their largest deficit of the first half, another basket by Sharp at 10:48 was followed by a Ja’Monta Black three-pointer and Hansel Enmanuel layup to cut the Govs’ deficit to a single point with 9:53 remaining in the half.
After again exchanging scores over the next four minutes, the Govs retook the lead with 5:01 remaining on an Isaac Haney contested layup which sparked a 6-0 APSU run.
Lipscomb tied the game at 39 with just over two minutes remaining, but Daniel Loos returned the lead to APSU with a putback in the final 50 seconds which proved to be the final points of the half for either team
Sharp tallied a game-high 19 points at the break on 9-of-13 from the field. Seven points by Ja’Monta Black followed him after the graduate student guard made a pair of shots from the field and went 2-for-2 from the line, going the distance in the first period.
After missing its first attempt of the second half, Lipscomb made five of its next seven attempts to take a 53-50 lead with 15:17 remaining in regulation. The quick start sparked a second-half performance from the Bisons which saw them make 20 of their 30 attempts from the field (.667) and four of their seven long-range attempts (.571).The difference of the night proved to be a six-minute, 17-1 Lipscomb run midway through the half, as the Govs faced a 72-53 deficit with under seven minutes remaining.
The APSU Govs trimmed the Lipscomb advantage to as few as 14 points twice, with the latter coming after Daniel tallied four-straight points in the final 45 seconds.
The Difference
The 17-1 run. From 13:49-7:09, the Govs missed 10-straight attempts from the field, while Lipscomb went 8-of-11 with a pair of three-pointers.
Inside the Box Score
Austin Peay State University fell to 40-36 all-time against Lipscomb and 13-16 against the Bisons in Nashville.
The APSU Govs fell to 2-8 on the road with the loss.
DeMarcus Sharp led the APSU Govs in scoring for the 11th tie this season with his eighth 20-point performance of the season.
JaVar Daniel and Isaac Haney earned the first starts of their Austin Peay State University career.
Daniel scored a career-high marks in points (15), rebounds (5), assists (4), free throws made (5) and field goals made (5).
Austin Peay State University scored a season-high 44 points in the paint, besting its previous mark of 38 set against Fisk and Midway.
Follow The APSU Govs
For news and updates throughout the 2023-24 season, follow the APSU men’s basketball team on X and Instagram (@GovsMBB), on Facebook (Austin Peay Men’s Basketball), or check back at LetsGoPeay.com.
Next Up For APSU Men’s Basketball
The Austin Peay State University men’s basketball team returns to Clarksville for a two-game homestand next week. The Govs tip off the homestand with a Thursday 7:00pm game against North Alabama for “College of Education Night” followed by a Saturday 4:15pm game against Central Arkansas.
