Lions' Comeback Falls Short at Newberry

NEWBERRY, S.C. – The Lions' men's basketball squad lost on the road to Newberry 103-77 Saturday evening in Eleazer Arena. Mars Hill fell to 2-11 overall, 0-8 in the South Atlantic Conference. The Wolves improved to 9-3 on the year and 5-3 in the league.

Devonte Williams came off the bench to lead the Lions with 19 points and eight assists. Isaiah Cuthbertson and Carter Wright followed scoring 14 and 12 points in the game, respectively. Cuthbertson added six boards. The Lions made only 17.4% (4-23) of their 3-point attempts in the contest and 45% (9-20) of their attempts at the foul line.

Newberry had six players in double-figures in scoring paced by Brunes Charles and Demarkus Smith with 16 points apiece. Gerald Evans added 14 while Dondray Walker posted 12 points. Xavier Holmes and Cole Birchfield tallied 11 points each. The Wolves out rebounded MHU, 50-39.

Layups by Cuthbertson and Thomas Anderson gave the Lions a 4-2 lead with 18:41 left in the first half. A 3-pointer by Demarkus Smith put the Wolves on top for good at the 17:36 mark. Newberry led by six points (10-4) after James Ashley tipped in a miss with 16:20 left in the first period. A 6-1 run capped off by a layup by Will Wright trimmed the Lions' deficit to just a single point (11-10) with 14:46 remaining in the half. Newberry scored six unanswered points to take a seven point advantage with 13:04 on the clock after Charles hit a shot in the lane. Once again the Lions answered cutting the lead to a single point (19-18) with 10:10 left in the frame after Williams scored inside. Again Newberry pulled away outscoring the Lions 29-10 over the next six minutes to lead by 10 points (38-28) with 4:02 left in the first half. The Wolves enjoyed a 45-39 lead at the break.

The Wolves began the second stanza on a 9-2 run to lead by 13 points with 17:39 left in the contest after Brandon Taylor hit a shot in the lane. The Lions would not die. They outscored Newberry 26-4 over the next four minutes to trail by only a single point (58-57) with 13:59 left in regulation after Wright nailed a shot from behind the arc. The game would remain close until the 9:32 mark. After leading by only two points (69-67), the Wolves went on a 24-4 run over the next four and a half minutes to seal the win capped off by a pair of free throws by Charles that gave the Wolves a 93-71 lead. The Lions were not able to manage another comeback in the contest as the Wolves obtained the 26-point (103-77) victory.

Mars Hill will host Anderson on Wednesday, January 15. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m.