TIGERVILLE, S.C. –
Drew Gardner finished with a game-high 26 points, while
Sidney Dollar,
Malik McConnell, and
Timon Jones all scored in double figures, to lead the Lees-McRae men's basketball team to a 99-83 road win at North Greenville this evening to clinch the team's 12th Conference Carolinas win of the season.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Lees-McRae – 99; North Greenville – 83
LOCATION: Hayes Gymnasium – Tigerville, South Carolina
RECORDS: Lees-McRae (14-12/12-11), North Greenville (6-20/4-19)
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Gardner shot 10 of 17 from the floor and connected on four shots from distance to pace the Bobcats in scoring, while also adding six rebounds and a block.
- Dollar chipped in 15 points, a team-high eight rebounds, and three assists, while McConnell added 14 points and three assists.
- Jones and Jaylin Stewart finished with 11 points and combined for seven assists and five steals, while Cale Harris tallied eight points and seven rebounds.
- Lees-McRae sprinted out of the gates by scoring 13 of the first 15 points and extended its lead to 23-9 on a layup by Gardner.
- The Bobcats maintained the double-digit lead for the remainder of the first half and used a three-point field goal by Gardner as time expired to take a 52-35 halftime lead.
- Lees-McRae pushed the lead to 22 points on multiple occasions in the second half including with 7:25 remaining in the contest on a jumper by Stewart to give the Bobcats an 80-58 lead.
- North Greenville slowly chipped away at the lead and trimmed the deficit to 95-82 with just over a minute remaining.
- A final dunk by Keith Holmes Jr. and a layup by Adam Norman gave the Bobcats the conference win.
- Lees-McRae shot over 54 percent from the field and 40 percent from distance, while outscoring the Crusaders 48-32 in points in the painted areas.
FOR THE FOES:
- Three Crusaders scored in double figures, led by Joe Conley with a team-high 21 points and nine rebounds.
UP NEXT:
The Bobcat will return to the McNair & Debi Tornow Court on Thursday, Feb. 24 as they host Barton at 7 p.m. in the regular-season finale.
For more information on Lees-McRae Athletics, follow the Bobcats on Twitter (@LMCBobcats), on Facebook (Lees-McRae Athletics), and on Instagram (leesmcraeathletics).
