Aggies win opener over Mid-America Christian

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LAWTON, Okla. (Nov. 15) - Kalaan Brown scored a game-high 15 points and the Cameron men's basketball team held off Mid-America Christian University in the second half, posting a season-opening 79-55 win over the Evangels Monday at Aggie Gym.

The win was the fifth straight season-opening victory for the Aggies under head coach Garrette Mantle.

Brown was one of three Aggie players in double-figure scoring on the night. Senior forward Marcus Girtmon added 13 points, while junior transfer guard Bam Harmon chipped in 12 points and a game-high nine rebounds. Junior center Arthur Trousdell, who led the Aggies in scoring in each of three exhibition games, was limited to eight points on 2-of-4 shooting.

Cameron committed 19 turnovers in the contest, but forced the Evangels into 27 miscues. The Aggies also owned a 45-31 rebounding edge in the contest.

Mantle's squad raced to a 20-8 lead out of the gates before a 5-0 Mid-America run made it a seven-point game with 8:15 to play in the opening period. The Evangels again trailed by only seven (27-20) after a pair of free throws by Donald Thorne at the 4:39 mark of the first half.

But Cameron took control from there. The Aggies closed the half with a 14-2 run, including seven points from Brown, to take a 41-22 halftime lead. Cameron then scored the first eight points of the second half to build a comfortable 27-point margin with just over 15 minutes to play.

From there, the Aggie lead never dipped below 24 until a jumper by the Evangels' Ryan Rush made it 77-55 in the final minute. Maurice Cubit answered with an Aggie bucket seconds later to forge the final score.

Next up for Cameron is a trip to Abilene, Texas, to participate in the Abilene Christian Tipoff Classic. Cameron will face host ACU on Friday at 6 p.m., before squaring off with Hardin-Simmons Saturday afternoon at 2.