BANNER ELK, N.C. – Four Bobcats scored in double figures, led by
Carter Phillips and
Sidney Dollar with 17 and 10 points respectively off the bench, but it was not enough as visiting Belmont Abbey shot over 50 percent from the floor and held the Bobcats to only 39 percent shooting in the second half en route to clinching a 103-80 Conference Carolinas win.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Belmont Abbey – 103; Lees-McRae – 80
LOCATION: McNair & Debi Tornow Court – Banner Elk, North Carolina
RECORDS: Belmont Abbey (16-9/14-7), Lees-McRae (13-11/11-10)
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Phillips shot 2 of 6 from distance and 5 of 5 from the charity stripe to pace the Bobcats in scoring while chipping in five rebounds.
- Dollar chipped in 10 points, six rebounds, two blocks, and two steals, while Drew Gardner and Timon Jones finished with 12 and 11 points respectively.
- Both teams traded points early until the Crusaders used a 16-6 run to grab momentum and take an early 15-point lead.
- After Lees-McRae cut the deficit back down to single digits near the end of the first stanza, Belmont Abbey countered with a late run to take a 57-39 halftime lead.
- The Crusaders extended the lead to 20 points just under a minute into the second stanza and held a sizeable lead for the majority of the second half en route to clinching the conference win.
- Lees-McRae held a 55-22 edge in bench production and a 44-36 advantage in points in the painted area.
- Belmont Abbey outscored the Bobcats 33-16 in points off of turnovers.
FOR THE FOES:
- Four Crusaders scored in double figures, led by Quest Aldridge with a game-high 22 points to go along with nine rebounds and five assists.
UP NEXT:
The Bobcats will travel to Mount Olive on Saturday at 4 p.m. for another Conference Carolinas contest.
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