Box score
BANNER ELK, N.C. --- The Lees-McRae College
men's basketball team converted some clutch free throws down the
stretch, and held off a late rally by Barton College en route to a
67-62 win in Conference Carolinas play on Saturday evening.
The win marks the Bobcats' first victory over Barton during the
Scott Polsgrove era, as Lees-McRae (4-12, 1-8 CC) connected on 42.6
percent of its attempts from the field, while holding the Bulldogs
(10-8, 5-5 CC) to a 36.4 percent clip from the floor and an 18.2
percent mark from beyond the arc. Barton won the battle on the
glass by a 44-30 margin, including a 19-12 advantage on the
defensive boards, while the Bobcats converted 18 Bulldog miscues
into 18 points.
Adam McFerran (Stow, Ohio) poured in 16 points on 6-of-14
shooting, while pulling down a team-high eight rebounds and
recording three steals. Sam Youse (Winston-Salem, N.C.) and Daniel
Sepokas (Illawong, Australia) joined McFerran in double figures
with 15 and 10 points, respectively, as Sepokas posted a game-high
seven assists. Youse also recorded a game-high four steals for
Lees-McRae.
Jaren Haley (Woodbridge, Va.) recorded a game-high 19 points for
Barton, as L.J. Dunn (Raleigh, N.C.) and Jarrett Jernigan (Virginia
Beach, Va.) joined Haley in double figures with 18 and 10 markers,
respectively. Dunn also pulled down a game-high nine rebounds as
Jernigan grabbed eight boards of his own.
Barton opened the first half strong, scoring seven of the game's
first eight points before the Bobcats responded, launching a 12-2
run to take a 13-9 lead on a jumper by Tevin Friday (Gastonia,
N.C.) at the 12:09 mark. After the Bulldogs knocked down three
straight buckets to take a 15-13 lead, the Bobcats answered with a
run of their own, going on an 11-0 spurt to claim a 24-15 advantage
on a Corey Young (Bluff City, Tenn.) with 8:12 to play in the
half.
Lees-McRae would hold the advantage for the remainder of the
half, taking a 37-31 lead into the intermission following a Young
jumper as time expired. Barton climbed back into the game early in
the second half, cutting the lead to 43-41 on an Ethan Maske
(Jacksonville, Ala.) layup at the 15:31 mark. Barton would stay
within five points for the remainder of the contest, evening the
score at 62-62 with 2:10 to play on a pair of clutch free throws by
Dunn.
The Bobcats refused to concede, knocked down five of six
attempts at the charity stripe down the stretch, while holding
Barton without a point in the final two minutes to secure their
first conference win of the season.
Lees-McRae returns to the court on Wednesday when the Bobcats
travel to Misenheimer, N.C. to take on Pfeiffer University in a
7:30 p.m. matchup. The Falcons won the first matchup earlier this
season, defeating the Bobcats by a 75-69 score in Williams
Gymnasium on Dec. 1.
- LMC -
