COLUMBIA, S.C. – The Benedict College men's basketball team opens the 2026-27 season on Monday with a non-conference game against Paine College.
Tip-off in the Benjam E. Mays HRC Arena is 6 p.m. Tickets are available at
www.benedicttickets.com.
The Tigers, under second-year coach
Dannton Jackson, will have a new look for the upcoming season, with 10 newcomers and four holdovers on the roster.
Benedict won a pair of exhibition games in the preseason, including an 83-69 victory over Paine on Oct. 31 in Augusta, Ga. In that game, newcomer
Dayvon Gates scored 31 points for the Tigers. He scored 18 points in the second half, and was near perfect at the free-throw line, sinking 17-of-18 attempts.
Lucca Reinehr, a 6-foot-8 forward transfer from Arizona Western College, had a strong showing in the game against Paine, scoring 12 points while shooting a perfect 5-for-5 from the floor. He also grabbed eight rebounds.
Jordan Brewer, who averaged 6.1 points and 3.3 rebounds per game last year for the Tigers, is one of the team's top returners. He finished with six points and grabbed eight rebounds against Paine.
After leading by one point at the half, 36-35, the Tigers used an 8-0 run midway through the second half to pull away. After Paine cut the lead to 76-69 on a 3-pointer with 2:26 left to play, Benedict sealed the game by scoring the final seven points, all by Gates.
