Three men surpassed 20 points, and 2 more had double figures as TCJ Eagles Men's Basketball outlasted South Region rival Pensacola Christian College in a thrilling duel on Tuesday. PCC had one man with 28 points and three more in double figures as well, but Trinity won the game 97-88.

Digeo Fernandez exploded for 16 points in the second half to finish with 26. Fernandez was 7 for 16 from the field with a pair of threes and 10 for 12 at the line. 

For the second consecutive game, both Tayden Owens and Sherrard Adams topped 20 points. Owens used a trio of threes and all six free throws made to help lead himself to 21 while Adams's barrage of threes (5 for 9) garnered the bulk of his 21. The duo combined for 14-for-28 shooting (50%) and 8 of the team's 12 three-pointers. 

After a seesaw start that saw three lead changes within the first seven minutes, Pensacola Christian took a 10-8 lead on Blaies Conlan's three-pointer. They proceeded to forge a 12-2 run to take a 10-point lead at 19-10 with 10:51 left in the first half. Adams, and DJ Thompson, though, quickly got TCJ to within 2 at 20-18, and the teams played evenly for the remaining 9:39, getting no further apart than 4 points. Each TCJ score was matched by a PCC basket, and the teams went into halftime with Pensacola Christian leading 37-35. 

Both teams shot 60% or more in the second half. Trinity used 60% shooting, 6 three-pointers, and 20 of 25 free throws to score 62 points in just the second half. Pensacola Christian scored 51 in the second on 66% shooting, 6 threes, and 7 for 9 at the line. 

After Trinity tied the score at 46-all less than four minutes into the second half, PCC regained and held a slim margin until Alex Dawson nailed a three-pointer at the 9:50 mark for the final lead change. TCJ would not reliquish the lead again.

Trinity gradually expanded the advantage with many of their points from that moment on coming at the line. Overall in the second half, four TCJ Eagles shot 25 free throws and made 20 of them. Fernandez (8 for 10), Thompson (5 for 6), Owens (4 for 4), and Brandon Hill (3 for 5) came up clutch at the line in the second half with the majortiy of the shots coming down the stretch.

Thompson compiled 13 points, and Hill totaled 10. Dawson had two three-pointers to finish with 6. 

Trinity also held the ball exceptionally well, commiting only 5 turnovers while outrebounding PCC 33-25. 

Conlon led all scorers with 28 points (10 for 13, 4 for 5 in three-pointers, and 4 for 4 at the line). Teammates Kaiden Pack (18), Liam Gerdts (15, 3 threes), and Paul Stickles (12) hit double figures to help lead PCC. The team shot 57% overall with 11 three-pointers. 

Trinity will travel to a pair of South Region opponents on Friday and Saturday, February 6 and 7. First, the Eagles visit Toccoa Falls College for a 7:00 p.m. tip-off Friday evening. Then, a 3:00 p.m. start time follows at Bob Jones University on Saturday. The final home game of the season is Senior Day on February 14 against UCSAA Trinity College of Florida. The three remaining games are all on the road against South Region competition.