GUAYNABO, Puerto Rico. - The Birmingham-Southern men's basketball team prevailed over St. Mary's in their second game of the Puerto Rico Classico after being narrowly defeated by Albright in the opener on Monday.

BSC vs. Albright

The Panthers got off to a slow start and found themselves down 8-2 in just under three minutes of action. However, BSC stayed calm and did not let Albright stretch their lead. 'Southern found themselves down 14-10 with 13:04 remaining in the first half before they went on a 9-0 run in just under two minutes to go up 19-14. The Panthers built on their momentum and led by as much as 12 in the opening period. After the 9-0 run to take the lead, the Panthers continued to dominate the paint and scored 16 of their final 23 first half points in the area. BSC went into the half with a 42-35 lead and were hoping for more of the same in the second period.

Similar to the first half, the Lions had a fast start to the second. After a great finish to the opening half, the Panthers could not carry momentum over after the intermission. With 14:38 remaining in the contest, Albright retook the lead after going up 48-46. Over the 5:22 span, 'Southern committed five turnovers and shot two of seven from the field to lose their lead. Despite a back-and-forth game, the Panthers found themselves trailing by six with 4:23 to go. Good defense and buckets from Brody Davis and Dylan Patrick cut the deficit to one with 1:48 to go. After a layup from the Lions, clutch free throws from Kaleb Green put the Panthers down 71-70 with 40 seconds remaining. The Panthers late-game comeback would fall short as Albright closed out game one of the Puerto Rico Classico with a 74-72 win.

Final Score: Albright 74, BSC 72

BSC Leaders:

Jay Gillispie led the Panthers with 13 points, 16 rebounds, two assists, and a block. Kaleb Green also had 13 points in addition to five rebounds. Brody Davis recorded a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds. Brandan Copeland had 12 points, two rebounds, and an assist off the bench.

Records
Birmingham-Southern (4-6), (0-1 SAA); Albright (5-3), (0-0 MAC Commonwealth)

BSC vs. St. Mary's (MD)

With a chip on their shoulders after a tough loss on Monday, the Panthers had quite the opposite start in the second game of the Puerto Rico Classico. They took a 17-3 lead after a little over seven minutes of action. Brandan Copeland led the Panthers with 11 of the team's first 17 points in his first start for 'Southern. BSC continued their strong team basketball throughout the first half and never lost their double-digit lead. The Panthers went into the break with a 36-20 lead over the Seahawks. 

'Southern picked up where they left off to start the second half with five straight points from Dylan Patrick. Needing to cut into the BSC lead quickly, St. Mary's slowly trimmed the deficit down to 15 with 13:05 remaining in Guaynabo. However, great team defense did not allow the Seahawks to continue to chip away. With 6:40 remaining, Brandan Copeland went two for two from the line to put the Panthers back up 20. BSC looked to be cruising to victory, but St. Mary's then went on an 11-0 run in under three minutes to make things interesting with 4:03 to go. The Seahawks continued to push for a comeback after two consecutive threes with 1:23 left to make the score 59-54. After a missed three-pointer on their next possession, St. Mary's had to foul with 30 seconds left. To finish the game, the Panthers made seven of eight free throws to solidify the win and end the comeback scare from the Seahawks 66-59.

Final Score: BSC 66, St. Mary's (MD) 59

BSC Leaders:

Jay Gillispie recorded another double-double with 16 points and 14 rebounds. Brandan Copeland had 16 points, four rebounds, and two assists in his first-career start. Dylan Patrick tied his career-high in points with 12 and also added five rebounds.

Records
Birmingham-Southern (5-6), (0-1 SAA); St. Mary's (MD) (5-6), (3-0 United East)

Up next
The Panthers will be back home on Saturday, Dec. 30 at 2:00 p.m. against Piedmont.