BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — After a perfect regular season against Mid-South Conference opponents, the No. 1 Freed-Hardeman University Lions continued their dominance in league play, winning the MSC tournament title for the fourth consecutive season, this time defeating the seventh-seeded Bethel Wildcats, 72-64.
The top-seeded Lions (29-1) got started with a layup from
Phil Horton before a
Caleb Thomas 3-pointer followed. Bethel would answer with a set of triples of their own before a layup at 15:42 gave the Wildcats a two-point lead. Horton slammed back-to-back dunks to reclaim the lead before
Lane Lauderbaugh's 3-pointer helped FHU to a 7-0 run. The Lions continued to forge ahead with back-to-back layups from
Jailen Anderson and
Jamarcus Powell sparking an offensive flurry that ended with Horton's layup at 3:10 giving the Lions a 37-17 lead. Bethel would score the final six points of the half, but the Lions held a 37-23 lead at halftime.
Freed-Hardeman opened the second half with another Thomas trey before
Rodney Henderson scored seven of FHU's next eight points. Bethel (18-12) followed with seven unanswered points to cut into FHU's lead before the West Tennessee rivals traded blows over the remaining 10 minutes of the contest. A five-point swing late in the half narrowed the Lion lead to six, but
Blake Dean's free throws sealed the 72-64 victory and tournament title.
The Lions forced 18 turnovers in the victory, but the FHU bench was the biggest differential: scoring 41 points to Bethel's nine.
Phil Horton led the Lions with 14 points while
Rodney Henderson followed with a 13-point effort.
Jamarcus Powell led with nine rebounds while Horton grabbed six boards.
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Up Next
FHU earns the MSC's automatic bid to the 2026 NAIA National Championship, with the Brewer Sports Center hosting the first and second rounds on March 13 and 14. FHU will learn its opponents and the other visitors coming to Henderson on March 5.
