A packed Calvary Baptist gymnasium turned out Tuesday for the Cavaliers’ first home game in nearly two months and a fittingly back-and-forth battle between two of Louisiana’s top basketball teams.
But visiting Ruston (8-2) played spoiler behind a 7-0 fourth-quarter run, rim-protecting performance from Ahmad Hudson and clutch late free-throw shooting by Darren Ford to escape with a 67-63 road win.
The Bearcats led by just two heading into the final frame, then opened on a decisive run that forced Calvary Baptist (13-4) to chase the rest of the night.
T.J. Jamison nearly dragged the Cavaliers all the way back, accounting for almost all of home team’s offense down the stretch on his way to a game-high 27 points.
But Ruston’s defense locked in when it mattered most, surviving Jamison’s late flurry and closing it at the free-throw line to hand Calvary its first home loss of the season.
The Bearcats opened the quarter on a 7-0 run while the Cavaliers endured a string of empty trips. The margin had ballooned to nine before Jamison could stop the drought with a pair of free throws at the five-minute mark.
Calvary refused to fold. Jamison buried a deep 3-pointer to cut it to 56-50, then later knifed to the rim to slice the deficit again. With under a minute left, he turned a steal into a layup that made it 60-57 and put the Bearcats squarely on their heels.
But Ruston closed it at the stripe. Ford, who iced the game with a pair of clutch free throws, said his mindset was simple: “Got to win the game—that’s what I was thinking. Just win the game.”
Ford led the Bearcats with 21 points and pointed to the team’s chemistry through rising chaos as the critical factor late.
“Just sticking together,” he said. “Some teams get selfish in moments like that, but not us. We continue to stick together through everything, through the ups and downs, and I really like that about this team.”
Hudson was the night’s most disruptive force, finishing with at least 10 blocks and altering even more shots at the rim. The top tight end prospect in the country forced Calvary Baptist to settle for outside jumpers and hurried kick-outs all night.
“Felt pretty good,” Hudson said on his defensive performance. “Having my teammates keep me up during the game when we were down, it felt great to get this win with my friends.”
Jamison gave Calvary every chance. He attacked off the dribble, got to the line to break scoring droughts and hit multiple big shots in the fourth to keep the Cavaliers within striking distance.
But the early fourth-quarter mistakes proved too much to overcome.
“They were just more disciplined with the last-second game on the line,” Jamison said. “That’s something we’re going to get better at.”
Both teams entered the night battle-tested. Calvary had spent December on the road, traveling to Michigan and Tennessee before returning to their home court for the first time since November.
“Going out of state, playing better, good competition,” Jamison said. “Getting us ready for games like this, getting us ready for March, too. It’s been awesome.”
Ruston’s early schedule has also included out-of-state trips to El Dorado, Ark., to open the season and a win of the Capitol City Classic tournament in Salem, Ore., during the Christmas break.
“It’s been very good just playing against different levels of basketball, different competitions,” Ford said. “It’s always good to just come back home and show the crowd how we’ve come.”
