Box Score LEBANON, Tenn. - Just as it happened in the game before theirs, the Freed-Hardeman Lions built a big second half lead only to have to hold off a late rally in picking up an 80-72 win over Cumberland (Tenn.) on Saturday afternoon to open TranSouth Conference play.

The win broke a four-game losing skid for the Lions (8-5, 1-0), who were without starters Kirtiss Brown and Ken Bingham. Both are expected to return next Saturday.

The Lions took control of the game via a 21-4 run midway through the first half to go ahead 36-22 with 4:49 left. Zack Frey was dominant during the half, scoring 19 points and grabbing nine rebounds by halftime as FHU took a 40-25 lead into the break.

Freed-Hardeman maintained a double-digit lead for the majority of the second half, leading by as many as 22 points with 10:23 to play and still holding a 21-point edge (71-50) with 7:08 remaining.

But the Lions turned the ball over six times in the last seven minutes while making just one shot from the floor as the Bulldogs (4-11, 1-1) made a late push to get back into the game. They pulled within nine points with 1:01 to play but Jesse Moulton made a pair of free throws on the other end to effectively put the game out of reach. FHU made 7-of-8 from the line down the stretch to help keep Cumberland from getting within striking distance.

CU's Adam Barnett made a late 3-pointer to cut the final margin to eight points.

Frey led the Lions with 25 points and 11 rebounds while Moulton added 19. Anthony Sampson, getting his first career start in place of Brown, dished out a career-high 11 assists. Kyle Teichmann scored 11 points off the bench for FHU.

Cumberland's Brandon Springer led all scorers with 29 points, 23 of which came in the second half.

Freed-Hardeman is back in action on Monday as it travels to face Lambuth (Tenn.) University in a non-conference matchup.