Mike Evbagharu scored 18 points and the North Alabama Lions pulled away late to beat the Union (TN) Bulldogs 76-66 on Thursday night at CB&S Bank Arena at Flowers Hall.
Evbagharu made 6 of 10 shots and all 6 of his free throws in 27 minutes. He added 3 rebounds and 3 steals.
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The game was close most of the night. The teams traded the lead 17 times and were tied 9 times. Union led 38-37 at halftime, and its largest lead of the game was 5.
Union still led 64-63 in the second half when North Alabama scored 11 straight points to go up 74-64. That run gave the Lions their largest lead, 10. North Alabama outscored the Bulldogs 39-28 after the break.
Caden Harris added 15 points, 5 rebounds and 3 steals for North Alabama on 7-of-14 shooting. Damarien Yates scored 11 points off the bench, went 6-of-6 at the line and grabbed 7 rebounds in 16 minutes.
Emerson Juhasz led Union with 14 points and 6 rebounds but went 3-of-11 from 3-point range. JP Ricks scored 13 points with 3 steals, and Jamarcus Powell had 12 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 steals and 3 blocks in 38 minutes.
North Alabama made 20 of 26 free throws while Union went 9-of-14. The Lions also scored 36 points in the paint to the Bulldogs' 26, and Union committed 19 turnovers to North Alabama's 12. North Alabama improved to 2-0.
