THIBODAUX, La. – HBU erased a 14-point second deficit to take its first lead of the game with 5:35 left and tied the game after trailing by four with 38 seconds left, but Nicholls State's Sam McBeath's basket with two seconds remaining sent the Colonels to a 66-64 victory over the Huskies in Southland Conference basketball Thursday night at Stopher Gym.
 
Sophomore guard Rob Lewis led the Huskies (4-13, 1-4 SLC) with 18 points and five rebounds, while junior guard Tyler Russell had 16 points. Freshman forward Alex Fountain came off the bench to score a career-high 13 points. Sophomore forward Dauson Womack matched Lewis with five boards to lead HBU.
 
T.J. Carpenter led Nicholls (7-7, 4-1) with 13 points and six rebounds, while Shane Rillieux had 12 points. McBeath had eight points and six boards for the Colonels.
 
HBU shot 51 percent from the field for the game, but only 1-of-8 from long distance, and made 19-of-22 from the free throw line. Nicholls only shot 40 percent from the field, going 7-of-24 from behind the arc and 13-for-18 from the line. The Huskies outrebounded the Colonels, 34-27, but Nicholls outscored HBU, 30-16, in points off turnovers, forcing the Huskies into 22.
 
Jeremy Smith scored the first five points of the game for Nicholls, and the Colonels led 10-2 after a three by Carpenter. Junior center Ricmonds Vilde powered inside for a layup and a layup and a baseline jumper by sophomore forward Caleb Crayton got the Huskies within two, but threes by Pedro Maciel and Luke Doyle put the Colonels up, 18-10, with 9:14 remaining. Lewis converted with a three-point play, hit a fadeaway 12-footer off the glass, then a layup by Fountain made it a three-point game.
 
Cade Towers' short jumper from the right block gave Nicholls a 24-19 lead, but Lewis sliced through the defense for a layup and junior guard Marcel Smith fed Fountain on a fast break for a two-handed jam to cut HBU's deficit to one with 4:10 left. McBeath put the Colonels back up by seven with a 3-pointer and a three-point play. Just before the end of the half, Smith drove in for a layup, then Russell made a steal and took it the distance to trim Nicholls' lead to 33-29 at the break.
 
HBU shot 52 percent from the field, missed its only 3-point attempt, but went 7-for-7 from the free throw line in the first half, while Nicholls shot 38 percent, including 4-for-13 from behind the arc, and 5-for-7 from the stripe. The Huskies outrebounded the Colonels, 16-15, but Nicholls had six offensive boards to HBU's one and forced nine turnovers, while committing only three in the opening frame. Lewis led the Huskies with 11 points at the half, while McBeath had six to lead the Colonels.
 
Nicholls opened the second half with a 10-0 run to extend its lead to 14 at the 17:00 mark, but HBU answered back with the next six. Doyle made a three that gave the Colonels a 52-38 lead, but the Huskies answered with a 12-1 spurt that included a three by Crayton, who had nine points in the game, and a dunk by Fountain to make it a two-point game with 6:50 to go.
 
Carpenter made a layup to put the Colonels up by four, but a three-point play and an 18-foot jumper by Fountain gave the Huskies their first lead of the game, 58-57, with 5:35 left. Carpenter made a pair of free throws to regain a one-point edge for Nicholls, but Russell buried a baseline jumper for HBU. Rillieux made a pair from the line with 3:49 on the clock, and the two teams traded defensive stops until Maciel drove in for a layup with 1:18 to go and give the Colonels a 63-60 lead.
 
Lewis missed a three to tie with 46 seconds left, and Rillieux made one of two from the line. Lewis sank a pair of free throws with 24 seconds remaining, then Huskies sophomore forward Cody Joyce stole the inbounds pass and Russell twisted inside for a layup to tie the game with 13 second to go. Nicholls pushed the ball up the floor and McBeath put up a short jumper that fell through with two seconds left to give the Colonels the win.
 
HBU returns to action when it finishes the road trip against McNeese State Saturday at 3 p.m. in Lake Charles, La. The game will be shown live on ESPN3 and the Huskies' audio broadcast will be available on HBUHuskies.com.