Another Tough AAC Loss for the Eagles

Waleska, GA - The Eagles had back-to-back games with two of the toughest teams in the AAC with the Reinhardt coming up short in both of them.  The Eagles battled the Union Bulldogs to a slight overtime loss and easily could have won the game if the shots had fallen differently. Tonight's game was with the Bears of Pikeville (UPike) losing 96-82. The opening schedule has been a tough one for the Eagles and this game brings the overall roster to 1-4 and 1-3 in the AAC. The season is still very early and the team is still going through a gelling process that could take midseason before all parts are clicking with one another.

In the game, Tyler Smith continues to shine as the team leader. He had 27 points to lead the Eagles in scoring. He also had 5 rebounds to go with his 27 points. Smith with 100% from the free throw line shooting 5 for 5!

Nate Louis had another good game after coming off the brilliant performance on the road at Union.  Louis ended up with 18 points on 6-14 from the field and 2 of 6 from behind the three-point arc.  Louis was 4 for 5 from the line.

Missing from the double-point club tonight was Nate Jones. Jones was injured in the last game and had to sit this one out.  With starting point guard Brandon Barron still injured and Jones out of this game, the Eagles had to pick their games up to keep it close to one of the top teams in the AAC.

Nekhi Fisher and Brasen James both had 12 points in the game. Both Fisher and James had clutch three-pointers in the game to keep the game within striking distance throughout, however, the visiting Bears never trailed in the game from start to finish.  Reinhardt was able to close the gaps every time the Bears made a run that seemed to take the game away from the Eagles, but they never backed down and kept pushing for the come-from-behind win.  

Turnovers were a big issue in the game, along with some defensive issues.  The Eagles had 14 total, which is getting better as the season goes on. Defensively, the Bears were able to drive for layups on the Eagles on several occasions. The Bears starting point guard led UPike in scoring with 24 points. Most of these points came from the free-throw line. He was able to find the holes in the Eagles' defense and drove to the basket with either scoring the bucket, getting fouled, or both.

The Eagles went into halftime with a 54 - 37 deficit, but they turned things around in the second half outscoring the Bears 43-42.

Reinhardt will have another chance to get things going in the right direction on Tuesday evening when the Lions of Bryan College come to town.  Women will play first at 5:30 pm and then the men's team will play shortly after (approximately 7:30 pm).