CLARENDON, Texas (Interstat) — Justice Johnson scored 31 points to lead the Redlands Cougars to a 90-78 victory over the Clarendon Bulldogs in a men’s junior college basketball game Friday night.

The game, which featured a combined 39 turnovers and 41 fouls, was ultimately decided by efficiency at the free-throw line and a decisive second-quarter run by the visiting Cougars.

Redlands, opening its season with a win, shot 20 of 27 from the foul line. Clarendon, which fell to 2-6, managed only 13 makes on 27 attempts, leaving 14 points off the board in a 12-point loss.

The most important stretch of the game came late in the first quarter and early in the second, turning a tight contest into a controlled lead for Redlands. After a back-and-forth opening period that ended with Clarendon leading 40-39, the Cougars seized momentum. They opened the second quarter with a 14-1 surge, holding the Bulldogs without a field goal for nearly five minutes.

Johnson was the catalyst, scoring 11 points during that pivotal run, which gave Redlands a 53-41 lead it would not relinquish. The Bulldogs struggled with ball security throughout the game, committing 17 turnovers that led to 22 points for the Cougars. Redlands, while also careless with 12 turnovers, capitalized more consistently on its possessions, posting an offensive rating of 117.1 points per 100 possessions compared to Clarendon’s 101.5.

Damond Matthews supported Johnson with 22 points and seven rebounds for Redlands. Jayden Forrest added 11 points.

Clarendon’s offense was more balanced but lacked a singular dominant scorer to match Johnson’s output. KD Davis led the Bulldogs with 12 points and nine rebounds. Chris Shelby scored 13 points off the bench, Ryder Cate added nine points and six assists, and Jamari Briggs finished with 11 points and six rebounds.

Despite the loss, Clarendon won the rebounding battle 33-30 and shot a slightly better percentage from the field, hitting 50.8% of its shots to Redlands’ 50.8%. The difference came from beyond the arc and, most glaringly, at the charity stripe, where the Cougars’ 74% mark dwarfed the Bulldogs’ 48%.

The result was an upset according to predictive metrics, as Interstat’s ELO system had given Clarendon a 59.4% probability to win at home.

Redlands will host Howard (Texas) on Dec. 12 in its next contest. Clarendon looks to rebound at home against Western Oklahoma State on Dec. 13.