NEED TO KNOW:
Score: Life U 88, Talladega 73
Records: Life U 11-3 (4-0 SSAC); Talladega 6-6 (3-2 HBCUAC)
MARIETTA, Ga. — The Life University men's basketball team closed out 2025 with a decisive win over the Tornadoes of Talladega on Saturday afternoon. The Running Eagles capitalized on 24 turnovers from the visitors, which lead to 30 points.
The Tornadoes snagged an early lead in the Eagles' Nest with the opening buckets of the contest before the Life U offense got going. Back-to-back threes from Shane Stevensen and Maurice Wright quickly swung the momentum as shots began to fall.
Four straight buckets followed for the Running Eagles, forcing an early timeout from the Tornadoes bench. The quick break did little to slow the offense as Talladega was forced to call a second timeout just minutes later in an attempt to keep the contest from getting out of hand after a Calvin Payton three gave Life U its first double-digit lead on the day.
The shots continued to fall for Wright and company as the lead stretched to 30-15 with 09:54 left to play in the first. Though the Tornadoes worked to cut the lead back to single-digits, the home standing offense proved to be too much as the Running Eagles closed the first half with a 55-37 lead. Stevensen led all scorers with 11 while Josh Baugher grabbed five boards and tallied five assists in the first.
Out of half time, Life U continued to keep its foot on the gas, pushing the lead into the twenties for the first time in the contest. A small run from the visitors midway through the second half made things interesting, but the Running Eagles remained in control for the entire half.
Behind 23 points from Stevensen, Life U closed out its final contest of 2025 with a 88-73 win at home.
TURNING POINT:
--The offense was on fire to start the contest, forcing two early timeouts from the visitors.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:
--Life U shot the lights out in the first, going 20-35 from the floor (57.1%) and 9-17 from beyond the arc (52.9%).
--The Running Eagles forced 24 turnovers.
--Life U had 38 points in the paint.
STANDOUT PERFORMANCES:
--Shane Stevensen: 23 points, 4 rebounds
--Maurice Wright: 18 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals
--Calvin Payton: 12 points, 5 rebounds, 4 steals
--Brashon Hall: 11 points, 7 assists, 3 steals
--Josh Baugher: 3 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists, 6 steals
UP NEXT:
--The Running Eagles return to action in 2026, picking back up with SSAC play at Point University on Saturday, Jan 3.
