Two teams featuring speed to spare squared off at Shands Gymnasium on Saturday, and the Angelina College Roadrunners won the race in the end thanks to a second-half push to hold off Cedar Valley College 98-82 in the final day of the Guy Davis/Coca Cola Classic Thanksgiving Tournament.
After Cedar Valley chopped into AC’s 15-point first-half lead, the ‘Runners responded with a 15-4 run to open the second half – a lead AC would push to as many as 25 points by game’s end.
Trent Brinkley led the Roadrunners with 25 points and nine rebounds, Kahari Beaufort added 20 points and Corinthian Ramsey tallied 16 points and five steals. Gary Blackston’s all-around effort netted eight points, seven boards, seven assists, two blocks and a steal.
Erik Stewart led Cedar Valley with 29 points that included seven made three pointers. KeAunte Humber finished with 16 for the Suns.
AC built a 15-point lead in the early going, but the Suns rallied with a 13-3 surge to trim the gap to five points at 51-46 at the 17:59 mark of the second half. Moments later, a skirmish broke out following a flagrant foul, leading to technical fouls and a pair of ejections. The Roadrunners then exploded for the big scoring run, eventually cruising to their seventh win of the season.
In the day’s earlier game, Panola College defeated Lone Star College-Tomball by a 95-87 score.
The Roadrunners (7-3, 0-1) resume conference play with Wednesday’s road trip to Paris College as part of a women/men doubleheader. The Lady Roadrunners tip off at 5:30 p.m., and the men follow at 7:30 p.m.
