13 Dec 2023 Warriors drop conference opener to Rhodes

CONWAY — The Hendrix Warriors fell 79-70 to the Rhodes Lynx to open up play in the Southern Athletic Association (SAA) last Saturday afternoon at Grove Gymnasium.

The first half proved to be an excellent spell of offensive play with both teams shooting an identical 42.86% from the field in the opening 20 minutes.

Hendrix went into the halftime break up 37-31 after Colton McMullin was good from the corner with a buzzer-beating three ball to end the half. That three-pointer was one of four to fall for the Warriors in the first half.

But the second half belonged to Rhodes as the Lynx knocked down 10 of their 16 attempts from beyond the arc, with talisman Phil Dotson finishing the afternoon with a staggering 35 points.

The Warriors gave it their best go down the stretch to keep Rhodes within touching distance, with Braden Weaver and Tyler Deithloff each going 3-of-5 from deep, but it was too little too late as Rhodes was able to capitalize in high-leverage opportunities to maintain a comfortable lead in the waning minutes.

Deithloff led the Warriors with a 21-10 double-double, one point shy of tying a season-high for the senior. He has finished in double-figures in all seven games to begin the season.

Weaver also finished in double-figures with 11 points. Daniel Cobb and Colton McMullin each recorded 9 points, with Caleb Squires tallied 8 points.

The loss drops the Warriors to 1-6 (0-1 SAA) on the season, and Coach Thad McCracken’s side now has two weeks of rest in front of them before returning to Grove Gymnasium on December 15 to host the Lyon Scots.