LAKELAND, Fla. – Saint Leo men's basketball erased a double-digit, first half deficit to come up just short against Merrimack Saturday night, 85-81 at the Terrace Hotel Classic.
 
The Lions (2-4) trailed by 16 points at halftime before cutting it to just four points, 83-81 with 10-seconds to play in regulation before coming up just short 85-81 to the Warriors (4-3).
 
Saint Leo saw four guys score in double-figures for the second straight night led by Junior Searcy and Yalen Reed. Searcy tied with Tyler Carter for the team led in rebounds with nine, each falling just shy of a double-double. Searcy paced the team with 21 points, just ahead of Reed at 19, Carter at 16 and Rusty Moorer with 13. 

Merrimack was paced by three players in double-figures led by Ryan Boulter and Juvaris Hayes who each eclipsed the 20-point mark. Boulter scored a game-high 25 points with Hayes finishing with 20 points for the night.

How It Happened

• Saint Leo opened up with a slow start, falling behind 14-4 in the first four minutes of action.
• The Lions battled to cut it to four, 14-10, with 13:44 to play after Junior Searcy's layup and slam dunk, and Tyler Carter's layup. The Warriors would push their lead back to double-digits with 10 minutes to play, 31-18.
• After Merrimack made it a 20-point game with 3:24 to go, 49-29, the Lions finished the half on a 6-2 run to close the gap to 51-35.
• Second half adjustments saw the Lions whittle away at the lead cutting it to 11, 54-43 with 16:37 to go, before outscoring the Warriors 25-23 to the 4:28 mark making it a nine point game, 77-68.
• The Lions continued to push and used a 9-4 stretch to make it just a four-point game with 1:29 to play.
• Rusty Moorer's three-pointer with 10-ticks left made it a two point game, 83-81, before two Merrimack free throws ended the game at 85-81.

Up Next
Saint Leo will look to open up Sunshine State Conference action on Nov. 28 at 7:30 p.m. at Eckerd College.

For the latest news, updates, and information on the Saint Leo men's basketball, be sure to visit SaintLeoLions.com. Fans can also stay up-to-date on the latest Lions news by following Saint Leo Athletics on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.