Trailing by 18 at halftime, the Covenant men's basketball team nearly pulled an incredible comeback before falling 90-79 at Berry on Tuesday night inside the Cage Center.
The loss snaps a three-game win streak to begin the year for Covenant who falls to 3-1. Berry, who came in winless despite losing all three games by a combined six points, improves to 1-3 overall.
Four players scored in double figures for the Scots led by TJ Cox's 17 points and six assists. Patjo Twagirayezu scored a season-high 15 points and collected eight rebounds, four assists and two blocks on the night. Chris Boyd also tallied 15 points and grabbed six boards, while Berto Dryden had 13 points and three assists.
The first half was dominated by the host Vikings. Berry shot 58.1 percent (18-of-31) in the opening half and built a 53-35 lead heading into halftime.
It took Covenant less than six minutes into the second half to turn the game around. Bailey Spragg's layup with 14:16 left in the game brought the Scots to within five at 60-55 and capped a 20-5 scoring run. During the run, Covenant found its stroke from deep as the Scots made four 3-pointers to slice into the deficit.
Covenant got to within one points on a couple occasions. Dryden buried a 3-pointer with 11:32 left that cut Berry's lead to 62-61 and another trey from the sophomore with 5:37 remaining made it a 77-76 game. A Boyd free throw with 4:29 left tied the score at 79 apiece.
Berry would end the game on an 11-0 run to seal the win. The Scots had chances down by one possession in the final minutes, but Berry withstood the rally.
Berry's Caleb Johnson scored 32 points in a reserve role to lead the Vikings. Owen Jacobs produced a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds, while Nick Marder had 19 points. Berry shot 48.4 percent (30-of-62) for the game and went 23-of-32 from the free throw line.
Covenant connected on just 37.5 percent (27-of-72) from the field while attempting 39 3-pointers, with 11 made. The Scots were a perfect 14-of-14 from the free throw line.