ODESSA, Texas - Lubbock Christian went 15-for-17 from the free throw line and four players finished in double figures as the Chaps held off a late UTPB come back to knock off the Falcons 83-74 on Thursday, Jan. 5. 

Both squads struggled from the floor early, shooting a combined 2-for-11 in the first four minutes of the game. The offense woke up for the Chaps (9-4, 5-2 LSC) after the first media timeout, as Kendall Dow and Aaron Gonzales hit from deep, before an Azariah Seay layup cut the LCU advantage to 13-10 with 11:47 left in the first half.

After a three-pointer by Najeeb Muhammad, the Chaps and Falcons (8-8, 2-5 LSC) traded buckets, with Kurt Wegscheider, Russell Harrison and Muhammad scoring for LCU, while Seay put in a pair of layups for UTPB. A three from DaJuan Jones cut the Lubbock Christian advantage to six, but another Wegscheider layup put the Chaps ahead 27-19 with 6:05 remaining in the opening half. 

Dow connected on four straight free throws to put LCU ahead 31-21, but jumpers from Jalen King and Alvarez Powell put the Falcons back down six. A Powell jumper made it a three-point game, but Muhammad nailed a three with 25 seconds left in the first half to swell the Lubbock Christian lead to 36-30. UTPB cut the lead down to four with a buzzer-beating layup by King, and the two teams went into the halftime break with LCU on top 36-32.

Both teams opened the second stanza with and-one plays, with Rowan Mackenzie and Seay both finishing at the hoop. The Chaps then opened up a 17-0 run, with Mackenzie, Wegscheider and Muhammad all scoring for LCU, while the defense held the Falcons 0-for-9 from the floor and forced three turnovers, and the Lubbock Christian lead ballooned to 56-36 with 12:24 remaining. 

The Falcons began to climb back with five points coming in a hurry from Jones, but three straight makes from Dow kept the Chaps ahead 62-45 with 8:33 left in the contest. Back-to-back three-pointers from Seay and Keyon Craddock cut the Lubbock Christian lead down to 11, and then an old-fashioned three-point play by Jones along with a connection from downtown by Seay made it a 68-61 advantage for the Chaparrals with 3:27 left in the contest. 

The two sharp shooting squads traded free throws for a bit, before Seay hit another three to make it a seven-point game, with LCU ahead 74-67 with 2:09 remaining in the Falcon Dome. The Chaps continued to make their free throws, and other than a jumper by DaJuan Jones with 15 seconds left, UTPB could not connect from deep, and the clock expired with Lubbock Christian holding on to 83-74.

LCU shot 25-for-27 from the free throw line (92.6 percent), including making twelve straight free throws in the second half and going 15-for-17 from the line in the final four minutes to ice the game.

Wegscheider recorded the first double-double for the Chaps this season, and the first for LCU since Mar. 3, 2022 when Parker Hicks scored 21 points and hauled down 12 rebounds in the LSC Quarterfinals against St. Edward's. Wegscheider scored a season-high 16 points, shooting 7-for-12 from the field, and pulling down a season-best 14 rebounds. He also dished out three assists and recorded a block. 

Coming off the bench, Dow scored a career-high 18 points, draining a pair of shots from distance. The freshman was also a force on the defensive end, with three steals and a block. His fellow Chap newcomer Najeeb Muhammad scored 16 points, going 3-for-4 from deep, while also pulling in five rebounds and picking up three assists. 

Mackenzie led the Chaps in scoring with 22 points, going 10-for-12 from the free throw line. He also flirted with a double-double, with nine rebounds and two assists. 

Jones and Seay led the Falcons with 24 points each. Both players went a combined 6-for-13 from three, while Jones, the conference's leader in assists, finished with seven against the Chaps. 

LCU finishes their road trip with a trek to San Angelo to face the Angelo State Rams on Saturday, Jan. 7. Tip-off is set for 3 PM.