Weekly Men’s Basketball Game Notes, December 10, 2007
Men's basketball game notes for week ending December 9, 2007
BREVARD - The Tornados had a tough week as they played not one, not two, but three games in a five-day span ... On Tuesday night the Tornados dropped their second straight home game, a 86-74 shootout to Lees-McRae ... The Bobcats shot 55.8 percent from the floor, including going 12-of-24 from behind the three-point line to down the Tornados ... BC had three players in double-figures as sophomores Andrew Freeman and Jonathan Whitson had 19 points each, while Shane Galloway recorded 13 points off the bench ... On Thursday, the Tornados stepped out of Division II play and traveled to Spartanburg, S.C. to square off with USC-Upstate ... The Tornados hung close with the Spartans for the first 35 minutes of the contest, until midway through the second half USC-Upstate went on a 22-2 run over a four minute span to put away BC ... Again Jonathan Whitson led the way for the Tornados, scoring 20 points and pulling down five rebounds as he went against a number of different Spartan players, all who were at least four or five inches taller for most of the night ... Fellow forward Joseph Chilton added 11 points ... The Tornados failed to pick up their second win of the year on Saturday afternoon, as they lost a heartbreaker to Erskine College, 55-51 ... The game was controlled by the defenses, as BC had nine turnovers in the first half, while Erskine shot only 26.9 percent in the opening frame making the first half score 27-21 in favor of BC ... The Tornados would hold on to the lead until a little over one minute remained when Erskine hit their third consecutive three-point basket to take the lead at 51-49 with only 38 seconds remaining in the contest ... Yet BC would struggle down the stretch and Erskine would make their foul shots in the closing seconds to seal the 55-51 win over the Tornados ... Brevard was led by Jonathan Whitson's double-double of 16 points and 11 rebounds, while junior Joseph Chilton had 12 points on the night, all from downtown ...Brevard College (1-8) will be off for exams and Christmas break and will not be in action again in the 2007 calendar year ... The Tornados will not return to action until Thursday, January 3, when they will play host to Virginia Intermont College at 8 p.m. ... BC will then jump right into SAC play when they will travel to Mars Hill on Saturday, January 5, to take on the Lions for the second time this season ... That game is slated for a 4 p.m. tip-off.
CARSON-NEWMAN - The Carson-Newman Eagles outscored the Maryville Scots 53-36 in the second half, but the Scots held off the Eagle rally for an 87-80 victory to hand C-N its first loss of the 2007-'08 season … Darren Williams led all scorers with 18 points after shooting 70 percent from the field and four-of-six from beyond the arc. Jordan Dixon added 16 points. Jesse McMurray also went four-for-six behind the three-point line for 12 points while Bobby Guyton posted his first double-double of the season with 13 points and 11 rebounds ... On Saturday, Carson-Newman dominated from start to finish in a 96-71 victory over Anderson University at Holt Fieldhouse. The Eagles (4-1) shot 49 percent from the field and 95 percent from the free throw line, including a perfect 11-of-11 from the charity stripe in the first half … Andy Tipton scored 20 points to lead all scorers while Zach Hyatte recorded a double-double with 18 points and 12 rebounds. Darren Williams added 11 points while Andrew Johnson collected 10 points.
CATAWBA - The Catawba Indians split a pair of games last week ... The Tribe lost its league opener on Wednesday at Lenoir-Rhyne 70-66 ... Catawba rallied from a 10-point deficit in the final seven minutes to tie the score on a three-pointer by Rob Fields with 2:40 to go, but a pair of turnovers allowed the Bears to regain a four-point lead and hold on for the win ... Antonio Houston led the Indians with 15 points, while Norman Monroe had 13 points and eight rebounds ... Catawba held a 42-35 edge on the boards, but shot just 36 percent ... The Indians led most of the way against St. Paul's in the 76-71 win, using a 12-5 run midway through the first half to take a double-digit lead ... St. Paul's rallied late to take a 67-63 lead with three minutes left, but Catawba scored the final seven points to grab the win ... Monroe led a trio of double-digit scorers with 17 points ... Houston added 16 and Fields 15 ... The Catawba Indians used a 19-10 edge on the offensive glass to outscore the Tigers 25-10 on second-chance points ... Houston has paced the offense this season, averaging 19.2 points per game and is pulling down 4.3 boards a contest ... He also ranks second on the team in assists ... Monroe averages 12 points and five rebounds a game, while Fields is hitting for 11.8 points per outing ... Donald Rutherford leads the way on the boards at 5.3 a game ... Catawba is shooting 44 percent for the season, but its opponents are hitting just over 50 percent ... The Indians have helped make up the difference in shooting with an average of 16 offensive rebounds a game and are also nearly a plus-six in turnover margin ... Catawba will host St. Augustine's on Saturday afternoon in its only contest this week.
LENOIR-RHYNE - The Lenoir-Rhyne College men's basketball team (4-1, 1-0) opened South Atlantic Conference play with a 70-66 victory over long-time rival Catawba on Wednesday evening at Shuford Memorial Gymnasium … Senior forward Josh Kindred (Holly Springs, N.C.) led the way for Lenoir-Rhyne with a double-double (18 points and 10 rebounds) to go along with five assists as L-R defeated Catawba for the 100th time in the all-time series between the two schools … L-R is also 23-1 in its last 24 SAC Regular Season games at home and has now won 32 of its last 35 contests at Shuford Memorial Gymnasium … L-R limited Catawba to just 36 percent shooting (22-of-64) for the game and held its star player, Antonio Houston, to just 15 points on four-of-17 shooting … Senior forward Reggie Bratton (Charlotte, N.C.) added 12 points off the bench and has now scored in double figures in 26 straight games … Meanwhile, junior forward Donte Watson (Fayetteville, N.C.) tallied a season-high 15 points on seven-of-eight shooting ... Kindred is now 33 points away from 1,000 for his career … The Bears continue to lead the South Atlantic Conference in field goal percentage defense (.378) … Lenoir-Rhyne hosts Belmont Abbey (3-4) on Friday at 6 p.m. … The Bears lead the all-time series with the Crusaders, 39-34, and won last year by an 84-72 score on November 25, 2006, in Belmont, N.C.
LINCOLN MEMORIAL - Although the Lincoln Memorial University men's basketball team lost a close overtime battle to in-state arch-rival Carson-Newman College the previous week (92-87), Thursday night's 61-42 win over North Greenville University was just what the doctor ordered for getting back in a positive frame of mind for the last few games of the first half of the season … From the opening tip of Thursday's game with the Crusaders, Lincoln Memorial controlled nearly every aspect of the game. Although shooting percentages were somewhat cold for both squads, the Railsplitters placed four players in double figures and were led by junior forward Terry Delaney (Murfreesboro, TN). Delaney came off the bench after fighting flu-like symptoms most of the week to score 12 second half points and finished with 13 on the evening to lead all scorers … Also in double figures were sophomore guard Beau Brown (Athens, TN) who scored 12 points and freshman Ryan Whitaker (Pineville, KY) who had 11 … Possibly the most impressive performance of the night came from LMU senior forward Ronnie Jones (Atlanta, GA). Jones was 4-5 from the floor, 3-4 from the free throw line, pulled seven rebounds, scored 11 points and handed out a team-high five assists, adding three blocks and two steals in 35 minutes on the floor with no turnovers … The win moves the Railsplitters to 3-4 on the year and with more than a week off to prepare for next Saturday's road game with North Georgia College and State University, the Railsplitters just may be clicking on all eight cylinders when they head down to Dahlonega, Georgia.
MARS HILL - The Lions went 1-0 on the week. MHC is now 3-4 on the season … Stoney Polite (Morganton, NC) set a new school single game record hitting seven 3-pointers to lead Mars Hill past North Greenville, 100-82, Saturday afternoon in Stanford Arena. The existing school single-game record was six 3-pointers. Three former Lions held that mark. Walt Baxley hit six against Lenoir-Rhyne on March 1, 2006; Wes Conner hit the same number against Anderson on January 28, 1998; and Tony King nailed six shots from behind the arc against Wingate on February 23, 1991 … Polite led all scorers with his career high 35 points. He added six assists and four steals … Jabreel Moton (Cincinnati, OH) added 16 points and three boards while Jordan Skinner (Yellow Springs, OH) tallied 14 points and six rebounds. Jamarl Glen (District Heights, MD) rounded out the double-digit scorers for the Lions with 11 points. He added six rebounds … After trailing 12-6 with 13:35 left in the first half, MHC went on a 18-2 run to take a 24-14 advantage with 9:55 on the clock after Josh Goble (Lenoir, NC) hit a layup. The Lions took a 52-35 lead into the locker room at the intermission … Moton scored 13 of his 16 points in the first frame. MHC out scored the Crusaders 20-6 to open the second half and take their largest lead of 31 points (72-41) with 13:50 left in regulation after Glen hit a shot in the paint. NGU then went on a 25-8 run of their own over the next six minutes to trim the deficit to 14 points (80-66) after Andrew Nipper hit a pair of foul shots but that was as close as they could get … MHC scored 26 points off NGU turnovers, scored 15 second chance points and scored 10 points off the break. Rebounds were tied at 43-all … MHC will return to action on December 15 when they play at USC Aiken. Game time is set for 3 p.m.
NEWBERRY - The Newberry Indians had a tough week, going 1-2 in their three games on the road… Monday night saw the Indians drop a close decision to Coker, 70-68… Four Indians netted double-digit points, led by Grant Domsic's 13… Stephane Bakinde and Vytautas Valiulis scored 12 and Terrance Spillers added 11… The Indians outshot the Cobras - 54.3 percent to 49.1 percent - and outrebounded the hosts 32-25, but failed to connect on a field goal in the final seven minutes of the contest… The Indians started South Atlantic Conference play on Wednesday night, but fell to Wingate, 86-83, in a tight battle… Bakinde set a new career record with 26 points, while Clemente Martin added 21… The Indians never trailed by more than six in the second half, but two late intentional fouls gave Wingate opportunities at the charity stripe to win the game… Valiulis recorded his first double-double of the season with 12 points and 10 assists… Domsic added 11… The Indians stopped the short losing skid on Saturday with an impressive 72-58 road win over Lander… It was Newberry's first road win over the Bearcats since joining the NCAA… Martin scored 24 to lead Newberry, while Domsic netted a career-high 20, shooting 6-of-9 from behind the arc… Bakinde added a double-double with 10 points and 10 reobunds… Valiulis dished out 7 assists to finish the week with 26 assists in three games… Newberry took the lead for good with five minutes remaining in the first half and extended the lead to a game-high 18 points on an alley-oop from Valiulis to Martin… The Indians are off until Saturday night for finals… The weekend matchup sees Newberry fulfill the second end of its home-and-home series with Limestone College… Tipoff in Gaffney, S.C., is slated for 7:30 p.m…. The Indians were 85-77 winners over Limestone earlier this season.
TUSCULUM - The Tusculum men's basketball team went 1-1 last week, including a 74-60 upset win over NCAA Division I Elon University… The Pioneers (3-5) led wire-to-wire over the Phoenix... TC jumped out to a 17-point lead at the half and held off a furious rally… Sophomore Kyle Moore paced the Tusculum attack with 23 points, including a dozen markers coming in the first half as TC led 39-22 at the intermission… Senior forward Jordan Lear finished with 18 points, while sophomore Jimmy Boone accounted for 13 markers… Tusculum finished with 13 three-pointers while shooting a blistering 61.9 percent from beyond the arc, the fourth best shooting percentage in school history… TC used a 13-4 spurt in the first half, including consecutive treys by Moore to lead 28-12 at the 7:44 mark… In the second half, Elon answered with a 10-0 run in the opening 2:30… Elon would cut the deficit to three (52-49) with 8:43 left in the game… Moore thwarted the run with seven straight points, including a critical three-pointer from 25 feet away as the shot clock expired with five minutes remaining… Lear added nine rebounds, while junior Ryan Troutman posted eight points and five assists… Tusculum dropped a 75-64 decision at Concord on Saturday… The Pioneers led 36-26 at the half, but Concord scored the first 10 points of the second period and used a 19-3 run late in the game for the win… Lear led Tusculum with his second double-double of the season with 20 points and 12 rebounds… Moore added 15 points, seven rebounds and five assists, while Troutman contributed 12 markers and five assists… Tusculum is leading the South Atlantic Conference in three-pointers made (10.1 per game) and three-point percentage (.415)… Tusculum has made a three-point field goal in 561 straight games… Lear has scored in 63 straight games and in 88 of his 89 career contests… Moore opened the season making his first 24 free throws, with that string ending at Elon… He is 27-of-28 from the free throw line this season (96.4%)… Lear needs one more point move into the 1,200-point club at Tusculum… His 1,199 points are the 11th all-time… Lear also moved into the top five at TC in career free throws made (285 - 4th all-time) and free throw attempts (365 - 5th all-time)… His .781 career free throw percentage is also the fifth highest in school history… Tusculum wraps up its seven-game road trip on Wednesday at Lees-McRae… TC is 3-3 so far on the road swing.
WINGATE - Bulldog senior guard/forward Sean Barnette averaged a double-double last week, helping lead Wingate to a 2-1 overall record. Wingate defeated 2007 NCAA Division II national tournament team Queens 96-80 on Monday night. The Bulldogs won an 86-83 SAC decision over Newberry Wednesday night. Wingate dropped a tough 92-73 road contest to defending national champion Barton Saturday night in Wilson, N.C. ... For the week, Barnette averaged 23.7 points per game and 12.7 rebounds per game. The 2007 SAC Player of the Year and SAC Male Athlete of the Year had a double-double in every game, pushing his career double-double total to 21. Wingate redshirt senior forward/center Bryan Grier has 23 career double-doubles (points, rebounds) ... Barnette had 27 points and 14 rebounds in the Queens win. He tallied 25 points and 14 rebounds in the Newberry victory. Against Newberry, the 2007 Daktronics All-American scored 20 of his points in the pivotal second half. At Barton, Barnette contributed 19 points and 10 rebounds ... Against Queens, Barnette hit eight-of-14 from the field, while adding four assists, two steals and a blocked shot. Grier filled up the stat sheets as well, with 19 points, 11 rebounds and seven blocked shots. Both the 11 rebounds and the seven blocked shots are season-highs for Grier ... Bulldog senior shooting guard Ernest Mangum had 17 points in 14 minutes against Queens, hitting four-of-six shots from beyond the arc. Wingate junior guard DeMario Mattox contributed 10 points for the hosts ... In the Newberry contest, sophomore guard Brandon Plummer scored a career-high 19 points for the Bulldogs. Grier had 16 points, 13 rebounds and four blocked shots for the hosts. Wingate's bench outscored Newberry's reserves 27-16. The Wingate-Newberry contest was tied 11 times. The game featured six lead changes ... At Barton Saturday night, Barnette and Plummer tallied 19 points each. Barnette added 10 rebounds for his double-double. Grier contributed 15 points and six blocked shots. Grier has 373 career blocks, only 43 shy of the NCAA Division II career record (he is the Wingate and South Atlantic Conference career blocked shots leader) ... For the season, Barnette leads the Bulldogs with 22.2 points per game and 8.9 rebounds per game. He is the top scorer in the SAC. Grier contributes 14.0 points per game and 8.3 rebounds per game. Grier has 38 blocked shots this year. Plummer averages 12.9 points per game.