MURFREESBORO, N.C. –
Jordan Akal scored 22 points, with
Mikhail Pocknett adding 21 as the King University men's basketball team fell to Chowan University in the closing seconds Saturday afternoon.
THE BASICS
FINAL: Chowan 87, King 86
LOCATION: Bob Burke Court; Murfreesboro, N.C.
RECORDS: King 8-14, 4-9 Conference Carolinas; Chowan 15-8, 9-5 Conference Carolinas
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
- Chowan scored the first six points before Akal got King on the board, scoring the first eight points for the Tornado to pull to within 12-8 with 16:22 to play.
- The Hawks extended their lead to 28-19 with 12:07 left, but Kenny Turner then scored two straight buckets to bring King back to within 28-23.
- King got back to within three with 8:42 left when Cam George hit a three, later pulling to within 35-33 when George hit another three with 6:49 remaining.
- After King continued to stay close, the Tornado tied the game with 4:00 remaining when Akal hit a three, with Kenny Turner picking up the assist.
- The Hawks then re-took the lead, with King tying the score at 48 on a free throw by Eli Elston before Josh Jackson hit a three with 36 seconds to play, sending King into the locker room with a 51-48 lead.
Second Half
- The Hawks pulled to within 53-52 early, but Elston hit a layup with 17:36 left, after which Akal scored five straight points to stretch the lead to 60-52.
- Chowan continued to cut into the lead, eventually tying the game at 65 with 11:27 left to play.
- The Hawks took an 84-83 lead with just under two-and-a-half minutes to play, but Jackson hit a layup to put King in front, 85-84.
- After Turner made a free throw with 8 seconds left, the Hawks hit a three-pointer with just under one second left to take the 87-86 lead, which would turn out to be the final score.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Akal led the Tornado with 22 points while going 4-for-4 from beyond the arc, one of four to score in double figures. Pocknett finished with 21 and a team-high eight rebounds.
- Turner handed out five assists and had one of two blocks for the Tornado, with Seth Cullen getting the other.
FOR THE FOES
- Dylan Askew led all scorers, finishing with 28 points. RJ Wilson added 26 for Chowan, also pulling a team-best 12 rebounds.
- Wilson and Skyler Davies both had three blocked shots.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- The 51 points that King scored in the first half marks the first time that King has scored 50+ points in a conference game since Jan. 7, 2023, when they scored 56 in a 99-98 loss at Francis Marion University.
UP NEXT
- King will play two straight at home, starting Tuesday when they host Converse University. Tipoff from the Student Center is set for 7:30 p.m.
- Chowan will host the University of Mount Olive on Wednesday night.
