Box Score Box Score
Austin, TX - The Louisiana College men's basketball team, led by a career-high 37 points from Anthony Gaines, Jr. and an ASC record 45 free throws, downed the Concordia Tornadoes 115-111 on Saturday afternoon in Austin, TX.
 
The back-and-forth battle of ASC foes saw the score tied an incredible 22 times and 24 lead changes between the two teams.
 
Gaines, Jr., who did not start Saturday's game, came off the bench to score a career-high 37 points on 13-of-17 shooting from the field and 11-of-13 shooting from the free throw line.
 
The junior also added six rebounds, four assists, and three steals to lead the Wildcats.
The turning point of the game came late in the second half with the Tornadoes leading by six at 92-86 at the 6:31 mark.
 
A 10-2 run by the Wildcats, which started with two free throws from sophomore Steve Evans and ended with a jumper by Evans in the paint at the 4:31 mark  gave LC a 96-94 lead.
 
Concordia's Josh Sanchez would tie the game at 96-96 two possessions later for the Tornadoes, but that was the last time the Wildcats did not have control of the lead, as LC junior point guard Kevin Cottonham promptly hit two more free throws 20 seconds later to give the Wildcats the lead for good.
 
Cottonham was clutch in the second half, scoring 16 of his 24 points in the final 20 minutes, including a 12-for-14 performance from the free throw line down the stretch.
 
The junior point guard also added five assists and was joined in double figures by Evans (16 points, 10 rebounds), Kevin Lewis (17 points), and Dillon Mandeville (11 points).
 
For Concordia, Josh Sanchez (20 points), Rashad Coleman (26 points), and Andre Potts (20 points) combined for more than half of the Tornadoes 111 points.
 
The win for LC puts them at 3-3 overall and near the top of the ASC standings with a 3-1 conference, tied for third behind Hardin-Simmons and East Texas Baptist.
 
The Wildcats will continue their tough early-season schedule with a rare New Year's Eve matchup against in-state Division I opponent Northwestern State on December 31^st in Natchitoches at 3 p.m.