NC Central tops McNeese 77-71 after blowing 19 point lead

Dec 15, 2017, 02:13 am

DURHAM, N.C. -- Brandon Goldsmith scored a career-high 19 points, Raasean Davis had a double-double and North Carolina Central defeated McNeese State 77-71 on Thursday night after blowing a 19-point lead in the second half.

Davis had 15 points and a career-high 13 rebounds and Pablo Rivas had 17 points for the Eagles (5-8), who ended a three-game losing streak.

James Harvey had 16 points and Jacob Ledoux 14 for the Bulldogs (2-6).

After McNeese used three straight 3-pointers to cut a 14-point deficit to five, the Eagles responded with a 7-0 run that led to a 42-32 advantage at the half. Central then scored the first seven points of the second half, the last six on 3-point plays by Rivas, for a 17-point lead.

The spread reached 19 before the Cowboys charged back, a 19-5 run making it 63-62 after a LaBarrius Hill tipin. After an Eagle free throw, Harvey hit a 3 to put McNeese up 65-64 and Ledoux's 3 gave the Cowboys a 68-66 lead with 4:47 remaining.

But with the game tied at 69 and less than 3-minutes remaining, the Eagles closed it out with an 8-2 run on four free throws and two baskets from Davis.