SHREVEPORT, La. (AP)—Geoff Payne paced Southern Utah with 30 points as the Thunderbirds edged past Centenary, 98-94, in a Summit League matchup on Thursday.
Payne was 9-of-11 from the field and nearly perfect, 11-of-12, from the free throw line. Tyler Quinney tossed in 21 points, Dave Marek had 17, and Cris Hoopes scored 14 off the bench for Southern Utah (9-18, 7-9).
Centenary (9-18, 3-12), meanwhile, shot more than 60 percent from the field, drained 11 3-pointers and received a career-high 35 points from guard Nick Stallings but couldn’t pull off the win.
Southern Utah led at the half, 47-38.
Centenary pulled within four points on several occasions, but at one point missed five of eight free throws over a five-minute stretch that allowed the Thunderbirds to move out to a 10-point lead.
The Gents answered with a 7-0 run to creep back within four at 89-85 with 1:01 remaining in the game, but it would not be enough.
Also in double figures for the Gents was Tyrone Hamilton, who scored 21, and Lance Hill had 14.
