BUENA VISTA, Va.  Facing the Knights of Southern Virginia for the second time this season, the Methodist men's basketball team had its work cut out on Saturday against the top–ranked team in the USA South. The Monarchs threatened early but were eventually overtaken by the Knights.

JUST THE FACTS
Final score: Southern Virginia def. Methodist, 76–63
Records: Methodist 5-13 (1–6 USA South), Southern Virginia 17–3 (8–1 USA South)
Location: Knights Arena; Buena Vista, Virginia

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Derrion Hicklen and Ke Edwards combined for Methodist's first 10 points of the afternoon. Brian Bullock was next to score, hitting consecutive three–pointers to give the Monarchs a 16–13 lead halfway through the first half.
• With 6:30 left to go in the period, Southern Virginia's Christian Goode recorded a dunk to cut Methodist's lead down to one point (17–16). The basket put Goode at 11 points on the day. Back–to–back triples by the Knights gave the home team a five–point lead entering the final minute of the half, and the teams traded a pair of free throws before the break.
• With a strong start to the second half, Methodist outscored Southern Virginia 10–5 over the first two minutes of action. David McCallum Jr. produced five points, while Edwards knocked down a three and Zac Sledge contributed a dunk. The next two minutes were controlled by Eli Ballstaedt, who scored nine points for the Knights (which included two makes from behind the arc), putting Southern Virginia back out in front by a score of 45–38.
• The scoring margin continued to tick upward as the Monarchs missed some offensive opportunities due to turnovers and the Knights kept the pace fast. Southern Virginia possessed a double–digit lead for the majority of the final 10 minutes of play.

MORE TO IT

• Derrion Hicklen led the team in scoring, totaling 19 points for the second game in a row.
• The Monarchs were forced to play the final 10 minutes without Zac Sledge, who was disqualified after recording his fifth foul.
• The Monarchs committed 22 turnovers, their most in a single game this season.

UP NEXT
Returning home for a midweek showdown, the Monarchs host William Peace University on Wednesday at 7 p.m. The Pacers are 1–6 in USA South play and 3–15 overall but picked up a 73–70 win at Greensboro College on Saturday.