Eagles Scond-Half Surge Lift Reinhardt past Bryan, 71-50!

Waleska, With their backs against the wall and the 2025-26 regular season winding down, Reinhardt Men's Basketball finds themselves in an almost must-win situation.  Each conference game the rest of the regular season (four of them left) has direct implecations on whether the team, first, gets into the tournamen, and secondly, where their spot will be in the final standings.  If Saturday is any indication of how the Eagles will finish up the regular season, the other teams in the AAC need to take notice because the team dismantled the visiting Lions of Bryan College, 71-50.

The Eagles used a second half fury to take the victory going away and the Lions did not have an answer. The Eagles outscored the Lions 44-24 after halftime, using efficient shooting and a stifling interior defense keyed by six blocked shots to secure the home win in front of a full house at the Brown Athletic Center.

After trailing by as many as 10 in the first quarter, Reinhardt closed the half with a steady push and grabbed a 27-26 lead when Nekhi Fisher knocked down two free throws with 30 seconds remaining. That late swing set the stage for a decisive stretch to open the second half. Tucker Lowe started the third-quarter surge with a 3-pointer at the 19:41 mark to make it 30-26, and the Eagles never surrendered momentum from there.

Reinhardt broke the game open with a sustained run midway through the second half. Leading 44-31, the Eagles strung together stops and high-percentage looks, highlighted by a dunk from Tee Williams off an assist from AJ Shaw with 12:20 remaining that pushed the margin to 54-31. Shaw later buried a 3-pointer at 7:51 to extend the advantage to 63-35 as Reinhardt's lead stretched beyond 25 points and effectively put the game out of reach.

Williams led all scorers with 20 points on 8-of-13 shooting, adding a 4-for-4 effort at the free-throw line along with three rebounds and two assists to pace the Eagles' balanced attack. Derrick Brown provided strong support inside with 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting, four rebounds and two blocks, while Blake Seitz anchored the glass with seven rebounds and two blocks to go with five points, along with Tucker Lowe who helped the Eagles with 8 points. Reinhardt finished 26-for-48 from the field (54.2 percent), 5-for-14 from 3-point range (35.7 percent) and an efficient 14-for-15 at the line (93.3 percent).

The Eagles also controlled the boards, owning a 37-27 rebounding advantage and limiting Bryan to one shot for long stretches of the second half. Reinhardt collected 31 defensive rebounds and turned its rim protection into transition chances, as the Lions struggled to find rhythm in the paint against the Eagles' length and timing. Despite committing 15 turnovers, Reinhardt's overall defensive presence, including the six blocks, kept Bryan from capitalizing consistently.

Bryan opened the night with early energy, using perimeter shooting and pressure defense to build an initial cushion. Kole Torres knocked down a 3-pointer at 15:57 to put the Lions ahead 9-6, and Cal Drake's dunk off a Torres assist pushed the lead to 16-6 with 12:55 left in the first quarter. However, Bryan could not maintain that pace. The Lions finished just 17-for-51 from the field (33.3 percent) and 4-for-22 from beyond the arc (18.2 percent), while going 12-for-19 (63.2 percent) at the line.

Reinhardt's tough team defense along with timely shooting behind the leadership of Williams, Reinhardt was able to cruise to the end making a statement on how they plan to play the rest of the way.

With the win built on efficient offense and second-half defense, the Eagles will need to use this as motivation and confidence as they will face a tough road opponent on Wednesday evening in South Carolina.  Reinhardt will play the Rams of CIU at Wednesday night at 7:30 pm.  After this, the team will return to Waleska to host the #1 team, Pikeville, on Senior Day next Saturday at the Brown!