GRAYSON, Ky.— With the No. 6 seed and a first-round bye in next week's WinWon Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) Men's Basketball Tournament already locked up, the Montreat men's basketball team traveled to Grayson, Ky. on Saturday for its regular season finale versus the Kentucky Christian University Knights. Thanks to a pair of late free throws from RJ Manginello, the Cavaliers improved to 18-10 (12-8 AAC) via a tight 72-71 road triumph.
 
AJ Baskerville's and-one jumpstarted the visitors' offense in the early going. The freshman scored six of the initial eight points during a 14-2 run that saw Montreat vault itself out to a 21-7 advantage just 6:35 into the contest.
 
Kentucky Christian (5-23, 5-15 AAC) utilized six 3-pointers to cut into the deficit, but Jack Keller had plenty of answers. The Houston, Texas native went nuclear during the first half, pouring in 19 points on 8-of-9 shooting, including a perfect 3-for-3 effort from beyond the arc. Overall, the Cavs shot 54.5 percent from the floor (18-33 FG) and 50.0 percent from deep (7-14 3-pt FG) en route to their 49-38 halftime lead.
 
As good as the Cavaliers were offensively in the opening frame, they couldn't keep up that same level of production during the latter half. Montreat went 7-for-29 from the field (24.1 percent) during the second period.
 
KCU didn't find its breakthrough until the contest neared its conclusion. Still down 66-55, the Knights rattled off an 8-0 spurt that pulled themselves within a basket of the hosts with 4:09 remaining in regulation. A jumper with 2:09 to go handed Kentucky Christian its first lead of the day (69-68).
 
Baskerville reclaimed the lead at 70-69 before the hosts took it right back, 71-70. Unfortunately for the Knights, they couldn't find a way to stop Manginello late.
 
Already with a plethora of clutch moments under his belt this season, Manginello drew a foul on a drive to the basket with seven seconds left. An 88.6 percent free-throw shooter, Manginello buried both. One final stop sealed the deal, and the Cavs left KCU with a 72-71 victory.
 
"I said it on Wednesday, and I'll say it again: culture wins," noted head coach Anthony Barringer. "KCU has always been a tough place for us to go get a win. We were three stops from breaking it open, and we didn't string together multiple stops during the final 10 minutes, but when it came time to get a basket and get a stop, we did both. Next stop: Kingsport."
 
Overall, Montreat concluded the day shooting 40.3 percent (25-62 FG). The visitors also shot 33.3 percent from beyond the arc (9-27 3-pt FG) and 92.9 percent at the charity stripe (13-14 FT). Kentucky Christian went 27-for-62 overall (43.5 percent), 9-for-29 from deep (31.0 percent) and 8-of-13 at the line (61.5 percent). The Cavaliers forced 11 turnovers while only committing five, and they led the way in both points off turnovers (11-3) and fast break points (12-0). KCU won the rebounding battle, 42-33.
 
Keller scored a game-best 27 points, and he joined Baskerville and Cam Rattler with a team-high seven rebounds. Baskerville and Lawrence Cole each recorded 12 points, while Manginello scored 10 points. Manginello led the squad with three assists, and both he and Cole tied for a game-high with three steals.
 
As the conference tournament's No. 6 seed, Montreat will square off against third-seeded Columbia International University on Thursday. Tipoff is scheduled for approximately 9:15 p.m. inside the Marriott MeadowView Conference Resort & Convention Center in Kingsport, Tenn.