Photo Courtesy of Jacob Turner
BANNER ELK, N.C. – In its first home game since winning a Conference Carolinas Championships last March, the Lees-McRae College men's basketball team picked up a 71-68 win over Tusculum University Saturday afternoon at Williams Gymnasium. The victory is the first of the season for the Bobcats, and it boosts its record to 1-3.
Saturday's contest was one that looked and felt very different depending upon which half you happened to watch. In the opening 20 minutes, LMC led by as many as 10 points and connected on nine three-pointers. Powered by Quay Kimble's 14 points in the first half, the Pioneers seemed to be playing catch up from the opening tip. Even with the sharp-shooting from LMC from beyond the arc, Tusculum did cut the deficit down to seven heading to the locker room for halftime.
The second half was very different from the first. Lees-McRae shot just 29.4 percent from the field on 34 shots from the field in the final 20 minutes. Tusculum, which shot just 37.5 percent in the second, was able to quickly trim the Bobcat lead to one possession. After a Jerick Haynes layup made it 70-68 Bobcats with 4:11 to go in regulation, neither team scored a point from the field for the rest of the game. The only point came on a Wes Morgan free throw with 10 seconds to go to close out the 71-68 win.
Kimble led the Bobcats Saturday with a team-high 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting from the floor, including 5-of-7 from beyond the arc. Kimble also nabbed a team-high three steals and dished out six assists as well. Morgan (13 points), Haynes (11 points) and Andrew Gardner rounded out the double figure scorers for the team Saturday.
LMC will look to win back-to-back games Monday when it welcomes Piedmont International to the High Country for a non-conference tilt. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. from Williams Gymnasium.
For more information of Lees-McRae Athletics, follow us on our social media sites on Twitter (@LMCBobcats), Facebook (Lees-McRae Athletics) and on Instagram (leesmcraeathletics)
-LMC-
