THIBODAUX, La. – Coming off of an eight-day Christmas holiday break, the Nicholls State University men's basketball team was able to hold on in the final minutes and secure a 71-64 victory over Spring Hill on Tuesday night.
 
The Colonels (3-7) were able to get back on track after a difficult 65-64 loss to Troy on Dec. 21. The contest was an exhibition for the Badgers (1-8), who held a four-point lead in the early minutes but trailed for the majority of the ballgame.
 
Nicholls scored the first points of the matchup but fell behind 12-8 after a layup by Jarrett Calhoun at the 14-minute mark. With nine minutes remaining in the half a Sam McBeath layup gave the Colonels their first lead since the opening basket. Nicholls pushed its lead to 11 after T.J. Carpenter drilled a contested three-pointer with under three minutes remaining in the period. Spring Hill chipped away at the lead, but Nicholls closed out the half with a 41-33 advantage.
 
The Colonels scored the first five points of the second period, increasing their lead to 13, but the Badgers responded with a 6-0 run of their own to pull within seven. With 10 minutes remaining in the game, Carpenter barreled through the lane for a layup that gave Nicholls its largest lead at 16 points. After a barrage of three-point shots, Spring Hill clawed back, cutting the lead to seven at the four-minute mark. The Badgers would pull within six in the closing seconds but the Colonels escaped with the win.
 
Nicholls shot a blistering 55.8 percent from the floor and 37.5 percent from beyond the arc, while holding Spring Hill to just 37.7 percent shooting on the night. The Colonels won the rebounding battle 35-30 and dominated points in the paint with a 40-16 margin.
 
Carpenter led Nicholls offensively with 19 points and added seven rebounds. Liam Thomas paced the squad with eight boards and set a new career high with six blocks. McBeath finished with four assists and two steals, both team highs, and added eight points and six rebounds to fill the stat sheet.
 
Robert Drummond led the Badgers' offensive attack with 13 points and finished with three steals. Wesley Pietri was second on the team in scoring with 12 points and had a team-leading five boards, while Calhoun dished out a team-high three assists.
 
Nicholls will travel to Beaumont, Texas for a 6 p.m. matchup with Lamar University on Saturday, January 3 before a road contest against Abilene Christian on January 10. Both games will be broadcast live on KQKI 95.3 FM.
 
Visit geauxcolonels.com for live stats and the most up-to-date information on Nicholls men's basketball.