Mars Hill Outlasts Wingate 91-90 In Overtime

Hickory, N.C. -- The Mars Hill College Lions defeated the Wingate University Bulldogs 91-90 Saturday evening in the semifinals of the 2008 Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Tournament at the Catawba Valley Community College Multipurpose Complex. The Lions advance to the championship game for the first time since 1996.

The MHC Lions improve to 14-15 on the year. They will face the Catawba College Indians in the championship game Sunday at 2 p.m. Wingate falls to 23-6 overall. The Bulldogs will learn their NCAA Division II tournament fate Sunday evening.

Sophomore guard Stoney Polite (Morganton , N.C.) led the Mars Hill attack with 23 points and five assists. Junior forward Jamarl Glen (District Heights , Md.) added 19 points while junior guard Jordan Skinner (Yellow Springs, Ohio) had 15 points and six rebounds. Senior forward Jabreel Moton (Cincinnati , Ohio) added 12 points and six rebounds.

Senior guard/forward Sean Barnette (Rock Hill, S.C.) led the Wingate attack with 27 points and 13 rebounds. The two-time SAC Player of the Year notched his 16th double-double of the season and 33rd of his career. Redshirt sophomore forward David Johnson (Durham, N.C.) added a career-high 18 points. Junior guard DeMario Mattox (Rocky Mount , Va.) contributed 14 points, seven steals, five assists and four rebounds.

A Barnette lay-up gave the number two seed Bulldogs a 90-89 lead with 36 seconds remaining. Lion junior guard Akeene Coakley (Mt. Pleasant, S.C.) snagged the rebound on a Polite miss and put it back in for the one-point lead. The Bulldogs had two shots on the other end, but were unable to connect.

The Bulldogs used an early 8-0 run to take a 14-6 lead at the 14:08 mark on a three from Johnson. A lay-up from Mars Hill junior guard Tony Blake (Canton , N.C.) made it a five point game when Wingate responded with another 8-0 run to take a 24-11 lead, capped by a lay-up from junior guard Rosco Turner (Lexington , N.C.).

A lay-up from Barnette at the 5:18 mark gave the Bulldogs a 36-20 lead. The 16-point bulge was Wingate's biggest of the evening. The Lions responded with a 13-2 run over the next four minutes to cut the deficit to 38-33. Polite and Skinner had five points each in the flurry. Wingate scored the next five points, capped by a three-point play from Barnette to give the Bulldogs a 43-33 lead. Wingate took a 43-34 advantage into intermission.

The Lions quickly cut into the lead in the second half, scoring the first seven points in a minute and a half of action, making it a two-point game at 43-41. The two teams would trade baskets over the next several minutes, with the Wingate lead staying between two and six points.

Mars Hill tied the score 68-68 at the 6:15 mark on an old-fashioned three-point play by Glen. The Bulldogs had the answer, getting a three from senior guard Sam Holmes (Danville, Va.) to regain the lead. Glen responded with a lay-up on the other end.

The Lions took their first lead on a lay-up from Tony Blake (Canton , N.C.) with five minutes to go in regulation. Blake's bucket gave the Lions a 72-71 edge. Glen hit a pair of free throws to stretch the lead to three. After a pair of Barnette free throws, Polite drained a three to put the Lions on top 77-73 with 2:22 remaining.

Buckets by Holmes and Barnette tied the game with 1:34 to go. Mattox put the Bulldogs on top 79-77 on a steal and lay-up with 21 seconds remaining. Skinner was fouled on the other end. He made both free throws with three seconds left, sending the game into overtime.

A Barnette three gave the Bulldogs an 83-82 lead a minute and a half into the overtime period. A Johnson free throw made it a two-point game. Mars Hill responded, getting a three-point play from Coakley for an 85-84 edge. Johnson responded with a jumper to give Wingate the 86-85 lead.

Polite followed that with a jumper, putting the Lions back on top by a point at 87-86. Barnette scored two inside hoops sandwiched around a Skinner jumper to put Wingate up 90-89 and set the stage for Coakley's heroics.

Wingate was 32-for-66 (48.5 percent) from the field, while the Lions were 34-for-73 (46.6 percent. Mars Hill hit 10 three-pointers on the night; the Bulldogs hit four. The Lions held a 42-39 rebounding advantage. Wingate scored 24 points from 25 Mars Hill turnovers.

QUOTES

Terry Rogers
Mars Hill College head coach

"No one expected us to win but us. Our kids have played everybody in the league all season long. We needed to learn how to win the close ones, which we have done lately."

"Jordan Skinner played the entire game with an injury. P.J. Gore hurt his knee…when it got into overtime I was not sure if we had enough left. We were able to reach down and pull it out."

"At halftime, we were down nine points…I told our team…Santa Claus came early…we played so poorly (in the first half), yet we were still in range."

Parker Laketa
Wingate University head coach

"Two quick turnovers changed the course of the game…bang…bang…it is something that has haunted us the entire season…sure enough, it (turnovers) reared its ugly head again tonight."

"They (Mars Hill) got right back into the ball game. They were feeling good about themselves. From this point forward, it was a dog fight."

"On missing All-American candidate Bryan Grier: "When you lose the best center in the league, it is a major impact. He is a very, very special player. His absence affects everything (we do)."

"This was a very disappointing performance for us. Especially when everything was going to plan in the first half…our bench did not step up."

Newspaper Box Score
Mars Hill College vs Wingate
03/08/08 6 p.m. at CVCC Multipurpose Complex, Hickory, N.C.
At CVCC Multipurpose Complex, Hickory, N.C.
MARS HILL COLLEGE 91, WINGATE 90
MARS HILL COLLEGE (14-15 overall)
Polite, Stoney 9-18 0-2 23; Glen, Jamarl 7-10 5-5 19; Skinner, Jordan 5-9 4-4 15; Moton, Jabreel 5-10 0-0 12; Coakley, Akeene 4-12 2-4 11; Blake, Tony 3-7 1-3 7; Gore, P.J. 1-5 0-2 3; Brozos, Tinos 0-1 1-2 1; Miller, Andy 0-1 0-0 0; Mack, Julian 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 34-73 13-22 91.
WINGATE (23-6 overall)
Barnette, Sean 10-20 5-8 27; Johnson, David 6-13 5-6 18; Mattox, DeMario 6-10 2-2 14; Holmes, Sam 4-6 0-2 9; Staley, Larry 1-4 4-5 6; Villines, Kenny 2-3 2-4 6; Turner, Rosco 1-1 2-2 4; Plummer, Brandon 1-6 2-2 4; Thys, Ryan 1-3 0-0 2; Mangum, Ernest 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 32-66 22-31 90.
Mars Hill College............. 34 45 12 - 91
Wingate....................... 43 36 11 - 90
3-point goals--Mars Hill College 10-29 (Polite, Stoney 5-10; Moton, Jabreel 2-5; Coakley, Akeene 1-4; Skinner, Jordan 1-3; Gore, P.J. 1-3; Brozos, Tinos 0-1; Blake, Tony 0-3), Wingate 4-16 (Barnette, Sean 2-6; Johnson, David 1-5; Holmes, Sam 1-3; Plummer, Brandon 0-1; Mattox, DeMario 0-1). Fouled out--Mars Hill College-Glen, Jamarl; Moton, Jabreel, Wingate-None. Rebounds--Mars Hill College 42 (Coakley, Akeene 9), Wingate 39 (Barnette, Sean 13). Assists--Mars Hill College 17 (Polite, Stoney 5), Wingate 17 (Mattox, DeMario 5). Total fouls--Mars Hill College 21, Wingate 22. Technical fouls--Mars Hill College-None, Wingate-None. A-625
2008 Food Lion South Atlantic Conference tournament, semi-finals
Mars Hill will face Catawba Sunday at 2 p.m. in the championship game