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INDIANAPOLIS - The IUPUI basketball team officially opened the 2014-15 season on Tuesday night (Oct. 28) when the Jaguars hosted the 4th annual Red-White Scrimmage at the newly renovated Fairgrounds Coliseum. Senior Khufu Najee scored a game-high 17 points and Mason Archie chipped in 14 points and five assists to lead the white squad to a 71-65 victory.

Junior Darell Combs paced three red team players in double-digits with 13 points and sophomore Jordan Pickett added 11 in defeat. Freshman Aaron Brennan tossed in 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting for the red squad.

The game was close throughout until a late 7-0 run helped send the white team to the victory. Brennan single-handedly cut an eight-point deficit back to three with a trey and 15-footer, setting the stage for the final five minutes. Clinging to a 56-53 lead, Archie splashed a trey to put the first teamers in front by six points with just more than five minutes to play. Two straight defensive stands set the table to extend out to an eight-point lead on Justus Stanback's jumper with 3:41 left. The run continued when Josh James gathered a Marcellus Barksdale miss and was fouled on the putback attempt, leading to two made free throws.

Junior Matt O'Leary, one of three Loyola-transfers on the red side, temporarily stopped the bleeding by stroking a three from the top of the key with 1:47 left. However, Najee all but ended it with a left-handed layup after blowing past a defender near the top of the key with 75 seconds to play.

"I thought there were a lot of positives," first-year Head Coach Jason Gardner said. "The guys played with a lot of energy and I think we showed that we're going to play hard and play tough all season long. There's obviously a lot of work to be done, but it's not even November yet. It was good to be able to show a little bit of what we're made of in this setting.

"I think this was a good starting block for us."

The white team hit 48.1 percent from the floor and 5-of-12 (41.7 percent) from three-point range, while outrebounding the red squad 37-30. Sophomore Elijah Ray pumped in 13 points on 6-of-8 shooting and Stanback added seven points and seven boards off the bench.

The red team was held to less than 38 percent shooting and 8-of-23 (34.8 percent) from deep.

Both sides excelled at the foul line, combining to hit 29-of-34 (85.3 percent) at the stripe.

The 16-minute first half was a little sloppier, but still had its share of highlights. Pickett enthused the crowd with a one-handed dunk in transition at the 10:30 mark but Leo Svete later answered with a three from the corner. The red team led by as many as seven in the first half before settling for a 24-23 halftime advantage.

The preseason slate will continue on Wednesday, Nov. 5 when the Jaguars welcome IU South Bend in a mid-week exhibition at the Coliseum at 7:00 p.m.. Tickets are available by contacting the IUPUI Athletics Office at 317-274-5453.