MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Rhodes men's basketball lost a heart breaker to Austin College 91-86 on Saturday in the opening round of the Crowne Plaza Christmas Classic.
 
The Lynx move to a record of 6-4, while the Roos' advance to 4-3 on the season.
 
Rhodes opened the contest with a field goal from Ryan Van Hoeck, but Austin College grabbed the lead after a 6-0 run to make the score 8-2 at the 17:36 mark. A Patrick McGrail three pointer at the 15:45 mark got the Lynx moving in the right direction, bringing Rhodes within one with a score of 11-10. The contest proved to be a close battle, as back and forth action ensued.
 
Van Hoeck secured a Lynx lead at the 9:52 mark converting an old fashioned three point play to make it 22-21. After Rhodes fell behind again, the Lynx went on a four point run to close the half, and charged back to tie the game at 39-39 at the break.
 
At the half, the Lynx were led by Van Hoeck, who netted 10 points to go with three rebounds. Patrick McGrail added eight first half points, with Geoff Livsey contributing six. The Roos' were led by Ransom Okpala who scored 13 first half points. Alan Sullivan added seven points for Austin College.
 
The Lynx shot an impressive 42.9 percent from the field in the first half, with 38.5 percent from beyond the three point arc. Austin had stellar shooting in the first half, with 50.0 percent from the field as well as 50.0 percent from the three point line.
 
The second half proved to be much of the same, as there were four lead changes in the opening four minutes alone. Rhodes mustered an 8-0 run with 13:42 to play, aided by a three pointer from Johnny Dunavant and a Tate Sledge lay-in to make it 51-46 Rhodes. The Lynx extended their lead to ten with a Brennan Sullivan basket at the 8:43 mark, giving Rhodes a 67-57 advantage.
 
But Rhodes saw their lead slip away as the Roos' charged back, powered largely from beyond the three point line. Austin College shot a remarkable 69.2 percent from beyond the arc, and the Roos' regained the lead with 1:15 to play off a Jeremy Swisher three pointer. Rhodes tried to claw their way back, but was never able to regain the lead, and eventually fell to the Roos' 91-86.
 
The battle was a tight one, with seven tied scores and 14 lead changes throughout the contest. Rhodes shot 46.6 percent from the field in the game, and an above average 45.5 percent from three point range. The good shooting wasn't enough, as Austin shot an even better 56.3 percent from the field in the contest, while knocking down 58.6 percent from beyond the arc.
 
Austin College was led by Okpala who scored a game high 29 points, while also recording four steals. Jeremy Swisher added 17 to the Roo's total, while Alan Sullivan contributed 11 points.
 
Rhodes scoring efforts were led by Ryan Van Hoeck, his first time leading the Lynx, with 24 points. Van Hoeck added eight rebounds to his total. Sledge totaled 13 in the game for the Lynx, while Dunavant added 12 points and four assists. Patrick McGrail added 11 points in his first start of the season to go with two assists and two steals.
 
Rhodes will play in the third place game of the Crowne Plaza Classic Sunday, Dec. 29 at noon against Howard Payne University.