DANVILLE, Va. -- Four starters scored in double figures as the Methodist men's basketball team defeated Averett 81-66 in the Grant Center on Sunday night.
 
With the win, the Monarchs improve to 15-4 overall behind a 10-1 mark in league play. Meanwhile, the Cougars drop to 8-9 on the season with a 3-6 conference record.
 
Jackson Whitley finished with 18 points and 12 rebounds for his eighth double-double of the year. He was 5 of 8 from the floor and made all eight of his free throws. Whitley also added three blocks and two steals. Troynell Reese finished with 17 points on 7 of 11 shooting and also contributed six rebounds and two steals. Bryan Rouse and Davion Ayabarreno tallied 11 and 10 points, respectively, while Rae Hall tallied eight points, eight assists and five rebounds.
 
In the first half, the Cougars jumped out to a six-point lead (12-6) at the 15:27 mark. The Monarchs used a 15-2 run, including 11-straight points capped by a Dante Jackson trey, to take the lead at 21-14 with 10:28 remaining in the half. MU held AU to 1 of 7 shooting and forced five turnovers during the five-minute run. A James Contreras Jr. layup pulled the Cougars within four points, but a pair of free throws and a basket by Rouse extended the Monarchs' lead back to eight points with 7:08 left in the half. Averett trimmed the deficit to seven points with 4:41 on the clock before a triple by Rouse and another pair of free throws from Whitley put the Monarchs up by double-digits and took a 40-29 lead into halftime.
 
After the recess, each side traded scores until a three-pointer by Austin DeLucia pulled the Cougars within 10 (48-38) with 12:41 on the clock. The Monarchs got eight of the next 11 points to restore a 14-point advantage, but another triple from DeLucia cut the lead down to 11 with 11:28 left in the game. That was as close as the Cougars could get as the Monarchs eventually went on to an 81-66 victory.
 
MU shot 50.8 percent (32-63) from the floor, while AU made just 38.2 percent (26-66) of its shots. The Monarchs outrebounded the Cougars 41-36. MU led for a majority of the contest.
 
In addition, Garren Dearman finished with seven points and added a pair of assists and two steals in 14 minutes off the bench, while Julian Carlton contributed four points and four rebounds in eight minutes.
 
For the Cougars, Contreras Jr. finished with a game-high 24 points on 9 of 18 shooting from the field. He also added three rebounds and two assists. DeLucia added nine points on 3 of 6 shooting from beyond the arc, while Louis-Patrick Mua led the team with six rebounds.
 
Methodist returns to action on Friday, Feb. 2, in the Riddle Center against Covenant with tipoff scheduled for 7:30 pm.