PINEVILLE – Louisiana Christian University's men's basketball team dropped a hard-fought contest at home to Paul Quinn College by a score of 87-77 Thursday but still controlled its own destiny as it seeks to clinch a berth into next week's postseason Red River Athletic Conference tournament.
 
Bailey Hardy came off the LCU bench and scored a team-high 17 points to lead four Wildcats in double-figures, but it was Henry Hampton's 28 points for Paul Quinn that lifted the visiting Tigers to victory.
 
Hampton's 3-pointer with 4:04 remaining in the first quarter tied the score at 31 and erased LCU's last lead of the game. The Wildcats would twice cut PQC's lead to one point in the second half but were unable to turn the tide of would end up being a 10-point triumph for the Tigers.
 
The visitors enjoyed a 35-12 advantage in free throw attempts at LCU's H.O. West Fieldhouse. Paul Quinn went to the line 23 times in the second half, making 19 of those free throws, good for an 82.6 percentage.
 
Gary Smith scored 14 points for the Wildcats (10-16, 6-12 RRAC), while Delor Johnson scored 12 points off the LCU bench. Jude Akabueze tallied a double-double for the 'Cats, scoring 10 points and securing 10 rebounds in addition to blocking five shots.
 
Despite the setback, the Wildcats still sit in seventh place as five teams battle for the three remaining playoff berths into the eight-team RRAC tournament. Four of the five teams trying to clinch those spots – LCU, Jarvis Christian, Huston-Tillotson, and Texas College – lost Thursday, with only Southwest (N.M.) winning at Huston-Tillotson. The Wildcats swept the season series from Southwest (11-15, 7-12 RRAC).
 
Texas College visits LSU–Alexandria on Saturday, while Jarvis Christian visits LSU–Shreveport. Southwest visits Our Lady of the Lake, while Huston-Tillotson is idle Saturday; the Rams visit Pineville on Monday to make up contests originally scheduled for Feb. 2.
 
Paul Quinn (13-7, 11-7 RRAC) is ineligible to compete in the NAIA's and RRAC's postseason. Located in Dallas, Texas, PQC holds dual membership in the United States Collegiate Athletic Association and is the defending USCAA national champion.
 
Thursday's men's basketball game was the only one played between the two schools as Paul Quinn suspended its women's basketball season last month. LCU's women were awarded a 2-0 forfeit victory Thursday, just as they were in January when teams were scheduled to play in Texas.
 
LCU's basketball teams celebrate Senior Day on Saturday when the Wildcats host a doubleheader against Texas A&M–Texarkana. The women's game will tip off at 2 p.m. with the men's game set to begin approximately 25 minutes after the conclusion of the women's contest.

– LCU –