BOSSIER CITY, La. – The Bossier Parish Community College Cavaliers upset the No. 6 Tyler Junior College Apaches 94-87 Saturday at the Coach Billy Montgomery Gymnasium. The victory gives the Cavaliers their 20th win of the season, which is the most for a BPCC team since 2004-05.
Three-point shooting was the difference in the game as BPCC connected on 11-of-19 (57.9%) of its three's. TJC, who entered the game as the best three-point shooting team in Region XIV, was just 8-for-30 (26.7%) from beyond the arc.
The hot shooting night by BPCC started in the first half, and allowed the Cavaliers to take a 38-27 lead into the locker room at halftime. It would continue in the second half as the Cavaliers led by as much as 16 points (64-48) with 12 minutes remaining in the game. In the final minutes of the game, TJC would cut the BPCC lead to under 10. However, the Cavaliers sank six straight free throws in the final 42 seconds to seal the victory over the Apaches.
BPCC freshman guard Paul King continued his torrid scoring streak as he lead the Cavaliers in scoring with 26 points. King, who's a Monroe native and Ouachita Parish High School product, was 9-for-14 from the field, 2-for-2 on three-pointers and 6-for-7 from the free throw line. It's his fourth straight game with 20 or more points. He has scored 31, 26, 40 and 26 points in those four games.
The Cavaliers had four other players reach double figures, including sophomore Charlie Cochran, who scored 20. Sophomore Allen Hatchett, Jr., registered his second double-double of the season with 18 points and 15 rebounds. Freshman Joshua Davis came off the bench to score 15 points, while sophomore E.J. Clark added 11. Davis was 5-for-5 from the field and 3-for-3 from beyond the arc.
TJC's Shahada Wells led all scorers with 30 points, but only two other Apaches reached double figures. Deandre Heckard, who suffered an injury late in the game and did not return, had 12 points, while Malik Lawrence-Anderson added 10.
With the win, BPCC improves to 20-10 overall and finishes the regular season with a 12-7 record in Region XIV, which is a program high. The Cavaliers ended up in a three-way tie for second place in the East Division and will be the fifth seed in next week's Region XIV Tournament, which will be held March 3-7 at the Centenary College Gold Dome. BPCC will play Coastal Bend College at 3 p.m. on Tuesday, Mar. 3.
The loss drops TJC to 25-2 and 17-2 in Region XIV. The Apaches are the regular season Region XIV Champions, and will be the top seed in next week's tournament.
BPCC Coach Chris Lovell becomes the first Cavaliers coach to win 20 games since the Louis Bonner-led Cavs went 20-10 in 2004-05.
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