LAKEWOOD, NJ (Feb. 17, 2026) - Georgian Court played nearly a flawless first half and look to be in control Tuesday night against Chestnut Hill. That is until the start of the second half when everything that could go wrong, did for the Lions as the Griffins quickly erased a 16-point deficit. GCU rebounded late though and were able to hang on for a 72-71 win and keep their playoff hopes alive.

How it Happened
• It wasn't just raining three's for Georgian Court in the first half, it was a downpour. They shot 11-17 from distance as they built a 44-28 lead.
• GCU shot 47% overall in the half, while Chestnut Hill hit 40%, going 2-7 from three.
• The downpour cleared up though and all of a sudden the three-ball wasn't working in the second half. The Lions were 0-9, finishing the game shooting 42.3% from behind the arc and 42.4% overall.
• Chetsnut Hill shot 41.5% for the game, hitting 4-11 from three in the second, 6-18 for 40 minutes.
• The Lions made some big free throws going 11-15 and 8-10 in the second half. CHC was 7-10 at the line.
• The Griffins held the edge on the glass with 41 rebounds to the Lions 37. They came down with 13 offensive boards and scored 16 second-chance points.
• Chestnut Hill didn't hurt themselves, losing the ball just five times. The Lions turned it over 10 times.

1st Half
• Georgian Court was cookin' from the jump. Up two, 12-10, the Lions got three-pointers from Cam Edmonds and Anthony Gooden, putting them up eight.
• One Lion in particular, Donavin Crawford, couldn't be stopped from behind the arc. He was 6-7 in the half, including hitting three straight in a 1:16 span. His third gave the Lions a double-digit lead, 27-17.
• Leading 27-19, the Lions scored seven straight, getting in front by 15 with 8:16 left in the half.
• Another three from Crawford and a layup from Edmonds gave GCU their largest lead of the night, 41-23, with 2:15 before intermission.
• Chestnut Hill made a jumper on their final possession of the half and trailed by 16, 44-28.

2nd Half
• The second half started with a layup from the Griffins and things quickly unraveled for the Lions.
• That basket was the start of a 17-0 run for Chestnut Hill as Georgian Court didn't score for more than seven minutes to start the half.
• CHC was 7-16 from the floor during the run and took advantage of four Lion turnovers.
• The Griffins took their first lead of the game, 45-44, at the end of the 17 straight points.
• Georgian Court finally got on the board in the second as Jacob Santiago drove in for a layup and scored.
• With the Griffins back up one, they went on another extended run. They outscored the Lions 16-8 and with six minutes to play had their largest lead, 64-56.
• Down but not out, Georgian Court finally regrouped. It started at the foul line where Crawford sank a pair.
• Then Edmonds followed with two from the stripe and a layup and it was suddenly back to a three-point game, 65-62, with 4:42 left.
• A Jaycen Santucci layup brought GCU within one, and Tesneem Ajeigbe followed a missed layup with an offensive rebound and a thunderous slam to give the Lions the lead back, 66-65.
• Edmonds made another layup and Georgian Court, who went scoreless for more than seven minutes earlier, scored 12 straight in 3:11 and led by three with 2:49 to play.
• It was again Chestnut Hill's turn to battle and scored consecutive baskets to reclaim a one-point lead, 69-68, with 1:07 left.
• Down at the other end it was Edmonds who took over with a driving layup and a foul. He hit the and-one putting GCU up two, 71-69 with just 45 seconds left.
• Edmonds gave GCU a three-point lead at the line making 1-2 and Chestnut Hill answered with a quick two to get back down one, 72-71, with 7.2 seconds left.
• GCU wasn't in a double-bonus just yet and a front-end free throw miss gave the Griffins one final shot. Donald-James Imo, the Chestnut Hill transfer, got a deflection to force a loose ball. The Griffins got it back but a rushed shot was off target and the Lions escaped with a 72-71 win.

Lion Stat Leaders
• Cameron Edmonds finished with a team-high 25 points going 8-13 from the floor, 3-6 from three and 6-8 at the line. He added eight rebounds and three assists.
• Donavin Crawford poured in 24 going 6-10 from behind the line.
• Jaycen Santucci was 6-11 from the floor scoring 13 points with 11 rebounds for a double-double.
• Tesneem Ajeigbe added five points, five rebounds and two blocked shots.

For the Griffins
• Alejandro Cyback finished with a game-high 27 points going 12-21 overall and was a rebound shy of a double-double.
• Malcolm Day chipped in 16 points on 6-10 shooting. He was 4-4 from three-point range.
• Jeremiah Gorham added 14 with five rebounds.

News and Notes
• Crawford's 24 points match a career-best and his six three-pointers are a new career-high. He also eclipsed 250 career field goals made.
• Cam Edmonds surpassed 500 career free throws. He's one of just four active players in Division II with 500+ free throws made.
• Jaycen Santucci scored his 250th point.
• For the sixth time this season, GCU blocked eight or more shots. 
• This is the fifth time this season GCU has comeback from down at least seven in the second half to win.

Up Next
• The Lions play the next two games on the road. They'll be at Dominican Saturday to take on the Chargers at 3 pm.