Kyle Poynter’s unexpected return couldn’t help the Houston Tigers get over the hump against Liberty.
The Eagles outscored Houston 37-24 in the second half Tuesday night as they pulled away for a 62-48 victory at Hiett Gymnasium.
It was Liberty’s third victory in three games against the Tigers (9-10, 1-3 SCA).
Houston got a lift from leading scorer Kyle Poynter, who returned after missing Friday’s 60-34 loss to Thayer with a sprained ankle. But after hanging close early and trailing by one at the half, the Tigers couldn’t hang on.
“It was a good first half,” Houston coach Brent Hall said. “They made adjustments in the third quarter and we didn’t. They attacked the basket and we couldn’t slow them down.”
Senior Ryan O’Neil scored 13 of his team-high 15 points in the first half. Poynter added 12.
Hall said Poynter, who sprained his ankle attempting a dunk at Friday’s pep rally, received medical clearance around 4 p.m. Tuesday. Hall estimated Poynter’s health at about 75 percent.
After falling behind 11-4 early, Houston outscored Liberty 18-10 in the second quarter and trailed 25-24 at the half.
The Eagles led by four after three quarters and stretched the advantage to 10 early in the fourth.
On Friday, Tyler DeWitt hit four 3-pointers and had a team-high 14 points in a 60-34 loss to Thayer.
Tuesday’s game
Liberty 15 10 17 20 – 62
Houston 6 18 14 10 – 48
LIBERTY – Yarber 1 1-2 3. Chambers 4 2-5 10. Young 2 3-4 8. Walkup 7 2-6 16. Daniels 7 2-6 15. Henry 4 2-4 10. Totals 24 11-24 62.
HOUSTON (9-10, 1-3 SCA) – KPoynter 4 2-4 12. Setters 3 0-0 7. O’Neil 5 4-5 15. DeWitt 2 1-4 6. TScheets 3 2-3 8. Totals 17 9-16 48.
3-pointers: Liberty 3 (Daniels 2, Young); Houston 5 (KyPoynter 2, Setters, O’Neil, DeWitt).
Friday’s game
Thayer 20 13 17 10 – 60
Houston 9 5 10 10 – 34
THAYER – Schneider 8 6-6 26. Shipp 5 0-0 11. Eckman 0 1-2 1. Martin 4 2-2 10. Veatch 3 2-2 8. Sandridge 1 0-0 2. Rison 1 0-0 2. Totals 23 9-10 60.
HOUSTON (9-9, 1-2 SCA) – Miller 1 2-2 5. Buchholz 0 2-2 2. O’Neil 2 0-0 4. CScheets 1 0-0 2. DeWitt 5 0-0 14. TScheets 3 1-2 7. Totals 12 5-6 34.
3-pointers: Thayer 3 (Schneider 2, Shipp); Houston 5 (DeWitt 4, Miller).
