FORT SMITH, Ark. (February 11, 2017) – Lubbock Christian University closed out their regular season road schedule with a 93-76 loss at Arkansas Fort Smith, as the Lions produced 16 three-pointers in the Heartland Conference battle inside Stubblefield Cetner Saturday afternoon.
 
The 16 UAFS three-pointers were the most allowed by LCU since John Brown University, another Arkansas based institution, drained 18 three-pointers on Jan. 14, 2006. Seven different Lions connected on the long distance shots. UAFS opened the second half 8-of-9 from three-point range and finished with nine in the half.
 
LCU's bench played a huge role and scored 46 of the Chaps 76 points for the game. Freshman Ja'Qualyn Gilbreath led the Chaparrals with a career-high 20 points. Jay Workman also added in 14 points and six rebounds for LCU in the loss.
 
UA Fort Smith started the game with a hot-hand and jumped out to a 22-11 lead over the Chaps 10 minutes into the contest. Gilbreath proceeded to explode with seven straight LCU points to pull the Chaps within five-points of the Lions at 23-18. Following a Workman triple, Gilbreath converted a layup with 7:58 to play in the half closing the UAFS lead to 25-23. The Lions retaliated with a 14-4 run that was capped by an Alex Cooper layup, giving UA Fort Smith their largest lead of the half at 39-27. A three-pointer by Ognjen Vasiljevic closed out the half and gave the Lions a 46-38 lead going into the break.
 
The Chaps shot well in the first half, posting a 50% (13-of-26) field goal clip. Gilbreath led LCU with 13 points on 80% shooting (4-of-5) from the field and 4-for-4 from the free throw line. UA Fort Smith edged out the Chaparrals on the glass 22-9 in the first period. Workman was perfect shooting 2-for-2 from beyond the arc and 4-of-4 from the field for 10 first half points. Lubbock Christian made nine trips to the free throw line and converted on eight for an 88.9% free throw mark.
 
Alex Cooper dropped 14 first period points on a 66.7% (4-of-6) shooting average. UAFS shot 11-of-12 from the free throw line for a 91.7% mark. Fort Smith notched 21 points from long-range for a 46.7% three-point average.
 
Brett Jolly kicked off the second half with another three-pointer for the Lions. Lubbock Christian answered with an 11-2 run to close the UAFS lead to 51-49 five minutes into the half. That was the closest the Chaparrals would come, however, as Marcus Wallace sparked a 22-2 run for UAFS that consisted of six three-pointers. Although LCU attempted to close the Fort Smith lead, the Lions were able to keep the Chaps at bay and finish the game with a 93-76 victory.
 
Marcos Schuster stepped up in the second half for Lubbock Christian with 10 points on 80% (4-of-5) shooting. As a team, LCU shot 44% (11-of-25) from the field and 92.9% (13-for-14) from the free throw line. The Chaps forced the Lions into eight turnovers in the second period. Lubbock Christian posted a consistent offense by scoring 38 points in each half.
 
The Chaparrals could not keep up with the Lions explosive shooting performance. UAFS finished the contest shooting 57.1% (16-for-28) from the three-point line and they finished with more three-point field goals than to-point field goals (15). Devaunta Thomas had a game-high 21 points to boost the Lions to a 52.5% average from the floor. Alex Cooper (14 points), Marcus Wallace (13 points), Ladarius Coleman (12 points) and Seth Youngblood (12 points) joined Thomas in double-scoring figures.
 
Gilbreath's 20 points marked a career-high for the freshman and a team-high for the game. Jay Workman was next in line for LCU with 14 points and a team-high six rebounds. Marcos Schuster and Brennen Fowler each added 12 points in the Chaps performance. The LCU bench exploded for 46 points for the afternoon. As a squad, the Chaparrals shot 47.1% (24-of-51) from the floor.
 
Lubbock Christian falls to 14-10 on the year and 8-6 in Heartland standings after the loss to the Lions. The Chaps final four games of the regular season will be held inside Rip Griffin Center beginning with a tilt against Newman University on Thursday Feb. 16. Tip off is set for 8:00 pm and the game will be broadcast on Lubbock's Fox 34 News Now channel.