JACKSON, Miss. – The Belhaven Men's Basketball team erased a double-digit deficit in the second half to earn a 69-68 win over Piedmont in Tuesday's CCS opener. A late tip-in from Martavin McWilliams proved to be the difference as the Blazers improved to 4-4 (1-0 CCS) on the season.
 
The visitors from Demorest got out to a strong start, taking a 14-2 lead in the opening minutes of the contest. Belhaven responded with a 9-0 run after a pair of threes from Judah Jordan and Jordan Marshall.
 
Piedmont was able to stretch their lead out to 15 midway through the first half. The Blazers battled back again, cutting the Lion lead to just six at 40-34 late in the opening 20 minutes. Piedmont found back-to-back buckets to take a 44-34 lead into the break.
 
Sophomore guard Todd Larkin provided a much-needed spark early in the second half, knocking down back-to-back three-pointers to cut Piedmont's lead to just four. Piedmont answered with a 14-5 run to go up 58-45 with 14 minutes to play.
 
From that point on, Belhaven began to turn the tide. Martavin McWilliams' putback with 5:57 left gave the Blazers their first lead since the 19:26 mark of the first half.
 
The teams traded the lead several times over the final few minutes. With Piedmont leading 68-67 with less than 30 seconds to play, McWilliams once again found himself in the right place at the right time. The sophomore forward pulled down a Belhaven miss and scored to put the Blazers in front with 22 seconds remaining.
 
The Blazers got the final stop on the other end to complete the comeback victory by a final of 69-68. Tuesday's win was historic, marking Belhaven's first-ever Collegiate Conference of the South win.
 
Jordan led the Blazers in scoring with a season-high 17 points. Freshman Neal Terry was dominant in his first career start as a Blazer, finishing with 14 points, 16 boards, and four blocks. McWilliams and Marshall also scored in double-figures with 13 and 11, respectively.
 
Belhaven returns to Rugg Arena one more time before the Christmas break, taking on Southeastern Baptist Friday, December 16th. Tipoff between the Blazers and Chargers is set for 6 PM. 
 
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