MEMPHIS-The Christian Brothers University Bucs rallied from a 13-point first-half deficit to claim a 74-71 win over West Alabama Thursday night at Canale Arena.

HOW IT HAPPENED:
• The Tigers (11-11, 7-9 GSC) took command early with a 19-4 run capped by back-to-back Deontaye Ewing three-pointers, giving UWA a 21-8 advantage with 11:55 remaining in the first half.
• CBU (11-11, 9-7) used a 14-2 run late in the half to take a 30-29 lead on a pair of #J.T. Moody# free throws with 31 seconds remaining in the first half.
• Back-to-back triples by Cody Garbuzinski (Memphis, Tenn./Christian Brothers HS) and Jeff Larkin (Cincinnati, Ohio/La Salle HS) gave CBU a 41-37 edge with 15:14 remaining.
• UWA regained the lead three times in the final eight minutes in the game, last when another Ewing three-pointer capped a 7-0 burst that gave them a 67-65 lead with 1:48 remaining.
• Larkin answered for the Bucs as he drove for a reverse layup to score a three-point play to give CBU a 68-67 lead with 1:17 remaining, then Larkin scored another layup with 46 seconds remaining to take a 70-67 lead. Two Drew Hildreth (Memphis, Tenn./Bolton HS) free throws gave the Bucs a five-point cushion, and Larkin answered a Ewing basket with two more free throws to seal the victory for CBU.

KEY STATS:
• Larkin scored 25 points with five assists and four rebounds.
• Adam Dieball (Cincinnati, Ohio/Lakota East HS) scored 20 with five assists.
• Hildreth scored 11 with 10 rebounds, three assists and two steals.
• The Bucs shot 51.9 percent (27-of-52) overall, including 43.5 percent (10-of-23) from three-point range.
• UWA shot 42.9 percent (24-of-56) from the floor, matching the Bucs' 43.5 percent (10-of-23) from beyond the arc.
• The Tigers out-rebounded CBU 33-29, including a 13-9 edge in offensive boards. Both teams committed 13 turnovers.

HEAD COACH MIKE NIENABER'S THOUGHTS:
"It's so simple. We had big guys making big plays. Our veteran players, Drew had a slow first half offensively but he had 7 boards. And then Drew stepped up and hit that big three when we were struggling with the 1-3-1 zone."

"We were very slow to start offensively, and we were slow defensively as well. They had 18 points with 12 minutes to go in the first half. But they scored 12 points in the last 12 minutes."

"The big thing is, like I said, Drew stepped up and made some big shots. Jeff made some major plays, getting to the rim, scoring. He hit a shot-clock three against the zone early. And Adam played really well."

WHAT'S NEXT:
The Bucs return to action Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m. as they host West Georgia for Homecoming.