HATTIESBURG, Miss. – The William Carey Men's Basketball Team clinched the Southern States Athletic Conference Regular Season Championship in dominant fashion, rolling past Blue Mountain Christian, 111–89, Saturday afternoon at Clinton Gym.
The Crusaders came out firing and immediately seized control. Hughes drilled a jumper, Roberts splashed a three, and suddenly Carey was off to a 6–0 start. Their defensive intensity smothered the Toppers from the opening tip, holding BMCU to just two points in the first three minutes.
Blue Mountain Christian tried to claw back with buckets from Michael Hill and Esrael Yant, trimming the margin to 8–6. But the rally ended just as quickly. Carey answered with a surge — a 9–2 run highlighted by a Hughes' dunk — pushing the lead to 17–8 and forcing BMCU on its heels.
Carey's momentum only grew from there. Hot shooting from beyond the arc padded the advantage, and by the seven-minute mark, a
Travis Williams three pushed the lead to 35–23. The Crusaders closed the half in explosive fashion as Jenkins caught fire, knocking down three triples in the final six minutes. Contributions on the glass from
Malik Franklin,
Troy Dunn, and
Anthony Robinson helped send Carey into halftime with a commanding 58–35 lead.
BMCU opened the second half swinging, knocking down two threes to cut the gap to 16. But Carey shut the door immediately. Roberts stopped the run with a layup, Jenkins splashed back-to-back threes, and the lead ballooned right back to 21.
The Crusaders never looked back. Over a seven-minute stretch, Carey attacked the paint with purpose, scoring their next 13 points on layups and free throws while stretching the lead to 81–63. The closing act was pure dominance — Franklin, Dunn, and Seibou rained down seven combined threes to put the game completely out of reach and secure the 111–89 victory.
Five Crusaders delivered double-digit scoring in the win. Jenkins and Franklin led the charge with 24 points apiece, Dunn poured in 18, while Williams and Seibou added 10 each. Hughes controlled the interior with a team-high 11 rebounds.
With the regular season title secured, William Carey now turns its attention to the SSAC Championship, set for February 25–28 in Montgomery, Ala., at the Multiplex at Cramton Bowl. The Crusaders enter as the No. 1 seed and will face either Point University or UT-Southern on Thursday, February 26, with tip-off scheduled for 6:15 p.m.
