FORT SMITH, Arkansas (February 6, 2021) – It was their lowest-scoring point total in more than a year, but the Lubbock Christian University men's basketball team still came out on top, beating Arkansas-Fort Smith 58-49 on Saturday.
 
It was the lowest single-game point total for the Chaps (12-0, 12-0) since Nov. 9, 2019, but that was in a loss to No. 14 Colorado School of Mines. The last time LCU scored 59 points or less in a win was Feb. 1, 2018, when they beat St. Mary's 55-48.
 
Watching just the first few minutes of the game, you would not have expected the Chaps to have such a low scoring total. Parker Hicks opened the game with a three-pointer, and Rowan Mackenzie followed with one of his own. By the first media timeout, LCU lead by seven points.
 
With 11 minutes left in the first half, the Chaps even began a scoring run that looked to put the game away. Aamer Muhamad hit a jumper to start the scoring, and before UAFS scored again LCU had scored 15 straight points and led by 17 overall. The only problem for Lubbock Christian was that they suddenly followed their hot streak with a cold stretch, allowing Arkansas-Fort Smith to score 11 straight points of their own. A free throw from Muhammad and a three-pointer from Ty Caswell left the Chaps up by 10 heading into the halftime break.
 
The trading of runs continued early in the second half, as UAFS quickly cut the lead down to five points before allowing LCU to stretch it all the way back out to 15 with a Mackenzie three-pointer at the 12:08 mark.
 
 An 11-2 run by the Lions lowered the gap all the way back down to six points, but by that point the clock was on the Chaps' side with just 3:36 left to play. The run lasted so long because of the inability of either team to make a basket from the 7:10 mark all the way until the 3:36 mark. The stretch of almost four minutes featured a combined six missed shots and four turnovers, or 10 straight empty possessions.
 
LCU finally got a bucket from Muhammad with 2:06 left to break another cold streak. Muhammad was the Chaps' offensive leader on a night where someone had to pick up the scoring. He had 19 points, which matched his career-high, on 6-12 shooting and a 6-8 showing at the free throw line. Mackenzie and Caswell were the only other two players in double-figures on the night, with 12 and 11 points, respectively.
 
Nearly all of Muhammad's free throws came in the final minute of the game, as the sophomore was sent to the line by a Lion team just trying to stop the clock. As if the pressure wasn't there, he hit five of those six attempts though, closing out LCU's 12^th straight win.
 
TURNING POINT
Lubbock Christian went almost eight full minutes without scoring a point in the second half. After a Lloyd Daniels bucket with exactly 10 minutes to play, LCU did not score again until Muhammad hit a layup with 2:06 left. The Chap defense kept them in the game though, allowing just nine Lion points during that stretch and maintaining the lead.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
Arkansas-Fort-Smith's 17 made field goals were their lowest in a single game this year and their 32.7 shooting percentage was their second-lowest all season.
 
NEXT UP
The Chaps will now return home to take on Western New Mexico in a pair of non-conference games on Feb. 11 and 12.