It was a post-season type atmosphere inside Mallory Gymnasium on Sunday, January 20th, as the Rhodes Lynx pushed past the Birmingham Southern Panthers to grab hold of the top spot in the SAA conference standings, 68-55.  After a back and forth battle to open the game, a layup by sophomore Geoff Livsey with 14:02 remaining in the first half gave the Lynx a lead that they would not relinquish.  Senior guard Andrew Galow led the Lynx offensive attack with 26 points on 7-11 shooting from the field and 10-10 from the charity stripe, to move Rhodes to 6-0 in conference play atop the SAA standings.

Two of the undefeated teams clashed, each knowing the importance of the game and what a win would mean.  After team fought hard early as the lead changed multiple times over the first six minutes of the contest.  A drive and finish by Geoff Livsey gave the Lynx a 11-9 lead, one that they would never let go of.  In the middle of the half, Rhodes used a 10-2 run, capped off by sophomore forward Matt Wagner's three-point basket to stretch the lead to 25-15.  The Panthers battled back, as Rhodes led at the half 31-27.

An 12-2 run by the Lynx to open up the second half pushed the lead to 14 points with 15:31 to play.  Birmingham Southern attempted to pick up the pressure in the full court, but the Lynx defeated it with poise.  Rhodes committed only four second half turnovers on their way to victory.  The Panthers were able to get as close at 8 points with 3:03 remaining, but could not close the gap.  Rhodes knocked down their free-throws late and claimed the top spot in the SAA conference standings with a 68-55 victory.

Rhodes defense lead the way for the Lynx win, holding the Panthers to 33.3% shooting for the game.  The Panthers combination of Richards and Kegarise, who were averaging a combined 28.1 points per game, were held to only 11 points on 3 of 13 shooting.

Offensively, Andrew Galow was the catalyst with a game-high 26 points.  Galow shot 7 for 11 from the field, including connecting on all 10 of his free-throw attempts.  Geoff Livsey and Drew Miller each added 9 points for the Lynx, Miller with a game-high 4 assists.  Theo Hartwell played a solid all-around game with 6 points, 10 rebounds, and 2 steals.

The Lynx improve to 11-6 on the season and 6-0 in the SAA.  The next four games will be a test for the Lynx as they head on the road to play the University of the South (8-6, 1-5) on Friday and Centre College (12-3, 5-1) on Sunday.  Join 'THE PACK' as they are sponsoring fan buses to the game against the University of the South-Sewanee on Friday.