Men's Basketball Falls to Wingate
The Lions lost to Wingate in South Atlantic Conference men’s basketball action 77-65 Saturday evening in Stanford Arena
MARS HILL, N.C. – The Lions lost to Wingate in South Atlantic Conference men's basketball action 77-65 Saturday evening in Stanford Arena. Mars Hill fell to 3-4 on the year and 0-2 in the league. The Bulldogs improved to 5-1 on the season and 1-1 in the SAC.
Michael Carson led the Lions with 18 points and five rebounds, going three-for-six from beyond the arc. Tyree Griffin added 15 points and six rebounds, while Brandon McCarter contributed 10 points and six boards.
Isiah Cureton had 20 points, 10 rebounds to lead the Wingate attack, going seven-of-12 from the field and four-of-six from three-point range. Xavier Griffin added 14 points, hitting 10-of-11 free throws while Mike Baez contributed 13 points, 13 rebounds and four assists.
A Baez tip-in five minutes into the opening half put the Bulldogs on top by four, while layups from Zeriq Lolar and Xavier Griffin made it 17-7 at the midway point of the first half. Another Lolar layup, along with two Josh Dominguez free throws pushed the lead to 13, but Mars Hill answered with a 10-0 run, making it 27-24 on a Justin Yeargin triple with 1:53 remaining. A dunk from Neico Robinson at the buzzer gave the Bulldogs a 30-26 halftime advantage.
A three-point play from Xavier Griffin gave Wingate a 37-31 lead five minutes into the second half, but a 9-2 Mars Hill run gave the Lions a one-point lead, with a Jalen Witherspoon triple making it 40-39 with 12:29 left in the half.
The Bulldogs responded with a resounding 24-5 run, starting with a Cureton triple and Keith Griffin layup. Cureton added another triple and a layup in the flurry, while an Anthanee Doyle jumper made it 63-45 with five minutes to go. A dunk and three from Tyree Griffin cut the lead to nine at the 3:30 mark, but two more Cureton triples made it 69-55 with 1:51 to go. Mars Hill would get no closer than 10 the rest of the way.
Wingate shot 46 percent from the field, hitting five-of-14 shots from three-point range (35.7 percent). Mars Hill shot 29.6 percent from the field, going nine-of-36 from beyond the arc (25 percent). The Bulldogs held a 51-39 rebounding advantage, but Mars Hill held a 14-4 edge in second-chance points. Wingate outscored the Lions 32-20 in the paint.
Mars Hill will host Piedmont International on Monday, December 7. Tip-off in Stanford Arena is set for 7 p.m.
