Men's Basketball Loses Close Battle at Wofford

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Mars Hill lost a close battle with NCAA Division I foe Wofford in a men's basketball exhibition game Tuesday night in Benjamin Johnson Arena. The Lions connected on a season high 58.5% (31-53) of their field goals in the contest.

Vernon Jackson led Mars Hill with 20 points and four rebounds. He was 8-12 from the floor and 3-5 from behind the arc. Brandon Watkins and Bennett Wilson followed with 14 and 12 points in the game, respectively. The Lions edged Wofford on the boards, 27-26 and connected on 42.9% (6-14) of their 3-point attempts.

Ryan Sawvell led the Terriers with 24 points and 11 rebounds. Eric Garcia added 12 markers while Fletcher Magee tallied 11 points. Wofford also shot well hitting 51.9% of their field goal attempts (27-52) and 45.5% from 3-point range (10-22).

The Lions fell behind 8-0 at the 18:16 mark after Garcia hit a 3-pointer. Mars Hill settled down and went on a 22-16 run to tie the game at 22-all with 9:39 left in the first half after Dotson Griffin scored in the lane. After a couple of lead changes, a high percentage shot by Jackson gave Mars Hill a 28-26 lead with 7:01 on the clock and the Lions would hold the advantage for the remainder of the initial period. Mars Hill led by as many as five points (37-32) with 2:54 left in the half when Wilson hit a jumper. The Lions took a three-point lead (41-38) into the locker room at the intermission.

Wofford opened the second half on a 13-8 run to take a two-point lead (51-49) after Sawvell hit a layup with 14:43 left in the second half. For the next 10 minutes of play neither team would hold more than a three-point advantage. The Lions' final lead of the contest came at the 6:04 mark after Watkins hit a shot inside to give MHU a 66-65 lead. A 3-pointer by Magee on the Terriers next possession gave the Terriers the lead (68-66) for good with 5:48 left in regulation. Wofford would outscore the Lions 9-3 over the next two minutes of play to lead by seven points (75-68) with 3:39 on the clock after Nathan Hoover hit a layup. The Lions refused to die and went on a 9-2 run of their own to trim the deficit to a single point (77-76) with 1:01 left in the game after Luke Van-Rijn scored inside. After a Wofford turnover, the Lions had a chance to obtain the lead in the ensuing possession but unfortunately an offensive foul gave the ball back to the Terriers. Cameron Jackson was fouled with 15 ticks left in the contest and he sank a pair of free throws to make the final tally 79-76 in favor of the hosts. The Lions missed a 3-pointer on their final possession and Wofford held on for a three point victory.

The Lions will host South Atlantic Conference rival Wingate on Saturday, December 3. Tip-off in Stanford Arena is set for 4 p.m.