CLINTON, Miss. --- Junior Antonio Johnson had a contested look at a three-pointer as time expired, but the Mississippi College men's basketball team fell to Shorter University on Thursday night, 68-67, in A.E. Wood Coliseum.

HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Choctaws (4-17, 1-16 GSC) scored the game's first five points as senior Byron McCall converted a layup on a nice assist by senior DeOndre Haynes and Johnson hit a long ball on an assist from sophomore Davy Fisher.
- The Hawks (15-8, 9-8 GSC) took their first lead of the night with 14:25 remaining at 10-9 when Damerit Brown drove the basket for a layup. The one-point advantage would tie for the largest lead of the night for Shorter.
- MC would push the lead out to as many as seven in the first half and take a 33-29 advantage into the break.
- In the second half, the Choctaws took their largest lead of the game with 11:44 remaining when Haynes turned a steal into a fast-break dunk and pushed the lead to 53-42.
- The Hawks would answer with a 12-0 run, followed by a 6-0 run from the Choctaws to take a 59-54 lead with 7:44 remaining.
- The game would remain close in the final minutes, including a 66-66 tie with 1:00 to go on a three-pointer by the nation's leading scorer, Phil Taylor.
- The Choctaws took the lead on the next possession on a free throw by junior Stacey Mack, but Taylor nailed two free throws with :41 seconds to go to take the 68-67 lead.
- Following a couple turnovers by both teams, MC had the final possession, which resulted in a missed three-pointer by Johnson as time expired.

KEY STATS
- The Choctaws tied their best shooting night of the season (first meeting with Shorter) by shooting 57% (28-of-49) from the field.
- MC also outrebounded the Hawks 35-26 and had 16 assists on 28 made field goals.
- However, the Choctaws turned the ball over 23 times, leading to 18 points for the Hawks, while 11 Shorter turnovers only resulted in five points for MC.
- Haynes led the Choctaws with 20 points, going 10-of-14 from the field. He combined to score 42 points against the Hawks this season and added six assists and five rebounds on Thursday night.
- Mack scored 12 points with a team-high eight rebounds, giving him 13 straight games with double-figure scoring.
- Johnson was also in double-figures with 15 points, going 4-of-9 from the three-point line.
- Amonte Potter scored a Shorter-high 21 points, going 7-of-13 from the field and 2-of-5 from the three-point line.
- Taylor, who averaged 33.6 points per game, scored a season-low 17 points, going 5-of-17 from the field. The senior added eight assists on the night.
- Eric Ross scored 10 points with seven rebounds for Shorter.

GAME NOTES
- The Choctaws are now 0-6 all-time against the Hawks, with none of the six games being decided by more than 10 points.
- The two games between MC and Shorter this season have been decided by a combined three points. Shorter def. MC 95-93 on December 17th.
- The Choctaws led for 36:17 in Thursday's game, only trailing for a total of 1:38.

NEXT UP
- The Choctaws will be back at home on Saturday when they host Lee at 4:00 p.m. in A.E. Wood Coliseum.
 

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Mississippi College is a private Christian university located in Clinton, Mississippi with an enrollment of over 5,000 students. MC is recently finished their transition process back to NCAA Division II and the Gulf South Conference and will be competing for conference and national championships in the 2016-17 academic year.
 
The athletic department sponsors 17 intercollegiate athletic programs: Baseball, Men's and Women's Basketball, Men's and Women's Cross Country, Football, Golf, Men's and Women's Soccer, Softball, Men's and Women's Tennis, Men's and Women's Indoor Track & Field, Men's and Women's Outdoor Track & Field and Volleyball.
 
For more information on Mississippi College athletics, please contact David Nichols at 601-925-3234 or nichols@mc.edu.