JACKSON, Miss. - The Belhaven Men's Basketball team opened the 2026-27 season with an 86-79 victory over Centenary inside Rugg Arena on Friday night. The Blazers used a late 10-0 run to pull away from the Gents, securing their fourth consecutive season-opening victory.
The win marked the second straight season-opening victory under Head Coach
Boomer Roberts, who guided Belhaven to its first Collegiate Conference of the South Championship and NCAA Division III Tournament appearance last season.
Senior guard
CJ Minton led the Blazers with 18 points, including a perfect 10-for-10 performance from the free-throw line. Junior transfer
Drew Mancell made an immediate impact in his Belhaven debut, finishing with 17 points, 10 rebounds and a game-high six steals. Freshman
Noah Sensing added 11 points off the bench, knocking down three three-pointers in his collegiate debut.
Belhaven (1-0) also received a strong performance from senior
Kam Beverly, who finished with eight points, nine rebounds, four assists, four blocks and three steals.
First Half
Mancell provided an early spark for the Blazers, throwing down three dunks in the opening four minutes to help Belhaven jump out to an 8-2 advantage. Mancell's third dunk was followed by a layup from Dan Robinson with 16:25 remaining, giving Belhaven a six-point lead.
The Gents gradually worked their way back into the contest, but Belhaven received an early boost from its newcomers. Sensing connected on his first collegiate three-pointer at the 11:44 mark, putting the Blazers ahead 14-10.
Devin McCaine followed with a transition three-pointer less than two minutes later to give Belhaven an 18-15 advantage.
Centenary continued to answer, eventually taking its first lead of the night at 22-21 with 5:42 remaining. The Gents extended their lead to 28-25 before Sensing knocked down another three-pointer to tie the game with just over three minutes left in the half.
After Centenary regained a 35-32 lead with 1:30 remaining, the Blazers closed the half on a 9-1 run. Robinson connected on a pair of free throws before Beverly put Belhaven back in front with an offensive putback at the 53-second mark.
Minton followed with a three-pointer off an assist from Beverly, and Sensing added two free throws in the closing seconds to give Belhaven a 41-36 advantage heading into halftime.
Second Half
Centenary opened the second half with four unanswered points to cut Belhaven's lead to one, but the Blazers responded with transition baskets from Robinson and Mancell to maintain their advantage.
Jaylen Sanford, making his return after missing the entire 2025-26 season due to injury, connected on a three-pointer with 17:12 remaining to extend Belhaven's lead to 48-42.
The Gents continued to chip away, eventually taking a 59-58 lead on Donnie Haney's putback with 10:59 remaining. The teams traded baskets and leads over the next several minutes, with Centenary building a 66-63 advantage before a Mancell dunk brought the Blazers back within one.
Sensing delivered another timely three-pointer with six minutes remaining, tying the game at 70-70. Centenary answered with four straight points, taking a 74-70 lead with 5:30 left to play.
Belhaven responded with the decisive stretch of the night. Minton connected on four consecutive free throws to tie the game at 74-74 before McCaine grabbed an offensive rebound and scored on a putback to give the Blazers the lead with 4:22 remaining.
Beverly followed with back-to-back dunks, the second coming off a behind-the-back assist from Minton, to cap a 10-0 Belhaven run and put the Blazers ahead 80-74 with 3:01 left. Centenary cut the deficit to three with 1:54 remaining, but the Blazers held the Gents without a field goal until the final 11 seconds. Minton connected on two free throws with 28 seconds remaining before
DJ Jones went 4-for-4 from the line in the closing eight seconds to secure the 86-79 victory.
Belhaven outscored Centenary 16-5 over the final 5:30.
By the Numbers
Belhaven finished with four players scoring at least eight points, led by Minton's 18 and Mancell's 17. Sensing added 11 points, while Robinson, Beverly and McCaine each contributed eight. Sanford finished with seven points in his return to the floor, and Jones added six.
The Blazers made their presence felt defensively, forcing 29 Centenary turnovers and recording 16 steals and six blocks. Belhaven converted those turnovers into 27 points and finished with a 32-27 advantage in fast-break scoring. Mancell accounted for six of the team's steals, while Beverly recorded four of Belhaven's six blocked shots.
Belhaven also controlled the glass, out-rebounding the Gents 51-46, including 17 offensive rebounds. The Blazers finished with 13 second-chance points and 15 assists.
Despite shooting 34.2% from the field and 23.3% from beyond the arc, Belhaven made its opportunities count at the free-throw line in the second half, connecting on 15 of 18 attempts (83.3%).
Centenary (0-1) was led by Donnie Haney, who finished with a game-high 22 points off the bench. Nicholas Addison added 15 points and eight rebounds, while Kellen Biley contributed 14 points. The victory was Belhaven's fourth consecutive win in a season opener, a streak dating back to the 2023-24 campaign. The Blazers also earned their third straight victory over Centenary, taking a 3-2 lead in the series since 2015.
Up Next
Belhaven returns to action on Wednesday, traveling to Laurel, Mississippi, to face Southeastern Baptist. Tipoff is scheduled for 6:00 PM.
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