The Lions played GSC East rival UAH Thursday, Feb. 3, ending in an 81-61 loss for UNA after injuries, foul trouble and game-changing mistakes caused adversity for the team.

Coach Bobby Champagne said that they had discussed in practice how they needed to capitalize in the game, but they were unable to against the University of Alabama-Huntsville. He said they had a good opportunity to come back as they cut UAH’s lead to four a couple of times as they had strong possessions, but they just didn’t come through after dealing with issues in the game.

“When your most consistent player is having an off night, it really makes it tough,” said Champagne. “Wes Long really stepped up, though, tonight. Even though he was worn out, we couldn’t get anyone else in the game because our bench was short.”

Wes Long had 15 points and was the leading scorer for UNA. He hit four threes at pivotal moments in the game and pulled down six rebounds for the Lions.

“The guys needed me tonight to step up, so I tried to do the best I could for the team,” said Long. “We had two post players hurt and one in foul trouble, but we just had to keep playing hard to try to turn it around.”

Coach Champagne said he thought they played great for 20 minutes; they missed some key layups and free throws, but, overall, played hard.

“This was a tough loss for us, but our goal is to getter better each and every day,” said Champagne. “We want to get stronger on the boards, play through adversity, and just get better as a team.”

“We are going to practice hard every day and try to keep the same routine, said Long. “Our goal is win. We have to. We don’t have a choice but to win now.”