Warhawks wear down Reddies

MONROE, La. — Henderson State hung with Division I Louisiana-Monroe for most of the first half in Thursday night’s exhibition game, but the Warhawks pulled away in the second to defeat the Reddies,

90-63, in the first action of the

2018-19 season for both teams. The Reddies used seven early points from Chris Parker to grab an 11-7 advantage at the first media timeout.

Louisiana-Monroe retook the lead at 19-18 on a 3-pointer at the 10:55 mark, but a quick bucket from Raekwon Rogers moments later put Henderson back in front. The Reddies led for the next five minutes with a lead as large as 27-21.

The Warhawks kicked it into gear and tied the game, 31-31, with 4:44 to go in the first half. They used a 12-2 run late in the period to take a 43-33 lead into the break.

Louisiana-Monroe opened the second half with five straight points to stretch the advantage out to 15 points. The lead was 55-41 with 13:05 to play when the Warhawks pulled away behind a 21-9 run and ultimately coasting to the finish.

Parker was the catalyst for Henderson, offensively, as he finished with 14 points. Rogers added 12 of his own on 5-for-9 shooting from the field and chipped in nine rebounds.

The Reddies’ first regular season game comes on Friday when Henderson faces the University of Mary at 5 p.m. in Dallas, Texas.