MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The Rhodes men's basketball team picked up a win in the opening round of the Southern Athletic Association Conference tournament on Friday over Millsaps College, 68-46.
 
The Lynx survive and advance with a 19-6 record on the season while the Majors finish with a 7-19 mark on the year.
 
Geoff Livsey made the opening bucket, but the Majors charged to take the lead and it wasn't until the 15:10 mark that an Aquil Muhammad layup erased the Lynx deficit to knot the contest at 10-10. But the Lynx couldn't establish a lead, as Millsaps' Myles Moore knocked down a trey to give the Majors a 13-10 advantage at the 12:30 mark.
 
The Lynx weren't defeated yet however, as a late charge down the stretch finally gave Rhodes an edge. A 9-2 run to close the half, topped off with a three from Luke Collins, gave Rhodes the 27-23 advantage heading into the break.
 
At the half, Drew Miller led all scorers with nine points, with four assists and two steals at the midway point. Livsey added seven for the Lynx, with Ryan Van Hoeck chipping in six. On the Majors side, Moore netted eight points, with Quinn Atkinson and Logan Mancuso each adding four apiece.
 
In the second half, the Lynx kicked things off with a 7-0 run, with a pair of buckets from Van Hoeck and a three from downtown by Livsey for the 34-23 lead with 16:37 to play. Rhodes worked to keep the lead, with help from the three-point line, as Brennan Sullivan and Miller got a pair of trey's to fall for a 43-32 lead at the 12:32 mark.
 
Head coach Mike DeGeorge's squad worked to widen the gap, as a pair of free throws and a deep trey from Collins gave the Lynx a 50-34 edge just two minutes later. The Lynx never looked back as they held on to a strong double-digit lead, with a Muhammad lay-in and Dylan Bliss three closing the contest as they brought home a 68-46 win.
 
Three Lynx made it into double figures with Livsey leading the way with 19 points. The senior added 10 rebounds for a double-double to go with three assists. Miller ended the night with 12 points, while picking up six rebounds and dishing out five assists. Van Hoeck was two rebounds shy of a double-double of his own, with 10 points and eight boards.
 
For the Majors, Moore finished with 11 points, with Atkinson adding eight. Rhodes held their counterparts to just 30.6 percent shooting from the floor, and a mere 13.3 percent from beyond the arc, with zero three's allowed in the second half.
 
Rhodes advances to the semi-final round of the SAA tournament, where they will face off against the winner of the 4/5 matchup, between Birmingham Southern College and Oglethorpe University. The semi-final action will tip at 7 p.m. on Feb. 28.