SEWANEE, Tenn.—Kam Stone led a group of five Stormy Petrels in double figures, but a late surge from Covenant sent the Oglethorpe men's basketball team to a 96-89 loss Friday evening in the 2026-27 season opener. Stone scored 18 points on 5-of-9 shooting, including 3-for-7 from the perimeter.
The game was all about runs, and none were more pivotal than Covenant's 6-0 stretch late in the second half that turned a three-point lead into a nine-point lead with under five minutes to go. Oglethorpe battled back to within four points, 89-85, with two and a half minutes left after a Carter Watkins basket, but the Scots converted enough free throws in the closing minutes to seal their second win of the year.
"This was not the way we wanted to start the season," said head coach Philip Ponder. "We had way too many turnovers (12) in the first half. We finally settled down in that regard, but in the second half, we shot the ball poorly and in the last 10 minutes we just couldn't get stops defensively. On a positive note, I liked the way we crashed the offensive glass tonight, but we have to cut down on our turnovers and we've got to be better defensively. We gave up way too many points in the paint tonight. We will look to bounce back tomorrow."
Game Notes
- Stone's 18 points came alongside four rebounds, two assists, two blocks and two steals.
- Dylan Wolle followed with 16 points, also on 5-of-9 shooting. He also posted five rebounds, two assists and two blocks.
- Willard Thompson (14), Watkins (13) and Braxton Giesler (12) rounded out the double-digit scorers for Oglethorpe. Watkins was one rebound shy of a double-double with a game high nine.
Up Next
Oglethorpe has a quick turnaround with the next game scheduled for Saturday against Piedmont.
