FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. -- The Methodist men's basketball team limited Maryville to just 20 second-half points and rallied from a 16-point halftime deficit to pull out a 68-62 win over the Scots on Monday evening at the Riddle Center.
 
The Monarchs (7-10, 3-4 USA South) found themselves trailing 42-26 at the half after shooting just 39.1 percent (9-23) over the first 20 minutes, while Maryville (8-9, 3-3 USA South) shot a shade under 50 percent (.484, 15-31) including five made threes in the first half, before mounting a huge comeback in the second half.
 
Methodist forced 15 second-half turnovers and held the Scots to 32.0 percent (8-25) shooting in erasing the first-half deficit. Maryville actually opened the second-half scoring on a layup by Jaumonee Byrd to take a 44-26 lead, but MU clamped down and allowed just a single free throw on MC's next 10 possessions, including 0-for-4 shooting and four turnovers as MU cut its deficit to seven points by the 15:19 mark.
 
Mike Major was the catalyst for the run, scoring six points and contributing a pair of steals and it was his jumper at the 15:19 mark that made it a 45-38 game in favor of MC and forced the Scots to call timeout. Out of the stoppage, the Scots converted inside on a layup by Byrd, but MU held Maryville to 1-of-6 shooting with six turnovers as it took a 50-49 lead by the 8:43 mark.
 
Tabias Hilliard scored six points and Brandon Monk added four during the Monarchs' 12-4 run that gave them their first lead of the contest as Hilliard drained a triple to cap the run. Maryville regained a three-point lead (53-50) on back-to-back layups by Logan Brewer and after a Major three tied the contest at 53-53, the Scots went back up four points (57-53) with 4:18 left in the contest.
 
A three-point play by Desmond Parker made it a 57-56 contest with just over three minutes to play, and after Tanner Torres missed the front end of a one-and-one for Maryville, Parker put MU back up one point with a short jumper and two-and-a-half minutes to play. A layup by Hilliard gave MU a 62-59 lead at the 1:04 mark and Hilliard. Major and T.J. Gill combined to go 6-for-6 from the line down the stretch to seal the win.
 
MU's second-half rally was needed as the Monarchs fell behind quickly in the first half. The Scots assumed a 19-4 lead under seven minutes after the opening tip by hitting six of the their first 10 shots, including three three-pointers. Conversely, MU opened the contest by making just 2-of-7 field-goal attempts and turning the ball over four times. Maryville would lead by as many as 19 points in the first half before Methodist's huge second-half comeback.
 
For the game, MU shot 45.1 percent (23-51) from the floor and 45.5 percent (5-11) from beyond the arc. Maryville shot 41.1 percent (23-56) overall and 5-of-22 from long range, including 0-for-10 in the second half. The Monarchs also hit on 17-of-20 free-throw attempts (.850), while Maryville was just 11-of-19 (.579) from the line.
 
Hilliard led MU with 19 points and Major chipped in a double-double of 18 points and 11 rebounds to go with four steals. Monk and Jackson Whitley each scored six points, and Hilliard also contributed three assists.
 
For Maryville, Byrd scored a game-high 20 points and Spencer Shoffner added 15. Oscar Butler scored eight points and pulled down 13 rebounds to go with three blocked shots. Brewer added eight points off the bench.
 
Methodist will play host to N.C. Wesleyan on Wednesday beginning at 5:30.