BRISTOL, Tenn. – Seven Bobcats scored in double figures, led by
Jaylin Stewart with a career-high and game-high 20 points and
Drew Gardner with 15 points off the bench, but it was not enough as host King connected a buzzer-beating three-point field goal at the end of regulation to force overtime and outscored the visiting Bobcats 21-9 in overtime en route to the 109-97 conference win.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: King (Tenn.) – 109; Lees-McRae – 97 (OT)
LOCATION: Student Center Complex – Bristol, Tennessee
RECORDS: King (Tenn.) (8-7/5-7), Lees-McRae (11-4/9-3)
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Stewart shot 7 of 12 from the floor and 6 of 9 from the charity stripe to lead the Bobcats, while also adding four rebounds, three assists, and two steals.
- Gardner shot 2 of 6 from distance and tallied four rebounds and four steals.
- Malik McConnell added 12 points, five rebounds, and three assists, while Jamarius Hairston chipped in 11 points and two steals.
- Timon Jones, Sidney Dollar, and London England all finished with 10 points each.
- Both teams battled for much of the first half until Lees-McRae used a fastbreak jumper by Stewart to claim an early 34-23 lead with just under eight minutes to go in the first half.
- King closed the first half on a 22-3 run to claim the 45-37 halftime lead.
- After the Tornado extended the lead to as many as 14 points, the Bobcats slowly chipped away at the lead until a three-pointer by Gardner gave Lees-McRae the 78-77 lead with three minutes left.
- Both teams traded points until a free throw from Dollar pushed the lead to 88-85 with five seconds left.
- A buzzer-beating three-pointer by King, on the next possession, pushed the game into an extra session.
- The Tornado outscored the visiting Bobcats 21-9 in the five-minute overtime session to clinch the conference win.
- Lees-McRae held a 48-39 edge in bench production and outscored King 21-19 in points off turnovers.
FOR THE FOES:
- Isaiah Curry finished with 19 points and a game-high 14 rebounds to pace the Tornado, while Michael Mays added 19 points and a steal.
NOTEWORTHY:
- With the win, the Tornado earns another point in the season-long "Battle for the Blue Ridge Cup" competition with the Bobcats.
UP NEXT:
The Bobcats will return to the Williams Gymnasium on Wednesday as they host Southern Wesleyan in a 6 p.m. Conference Carolinas showdown.
For more information on Lees-McRae Athletics, follow the Bobcats on Twitter (@LMCBobcats), on Facebook (Lees-McRae Athletics), and on Instagram (leesmcraeathletics).
