BANNER ELK, N.C. –
Nico Ashley and
Rodney Smith combined to score 51 of the 92 points for Lees-McRae men's basketball this afternoon, but Barton recorded the 97-92 win in the high-scoring affair. Smith and Barton's Reese McDonald matched with a game-high 28 points on the day.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Barton
– 97; Lees-McRae – 92
LOCATION: Wilson Gymnasium – Wilson, North Carolina
RECORDS: Barton (9-11/6-4); Lees-McRae (12-7/6-4)
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Smith scored the first four points for the Bobcats as Lees-McRae gained its first lead at 4-2 with 18:30 left in the first half. Timon Jones and Smith buried back-to-back threes to elevate the Bobcat to five points at 10-5.
- The Bulldogs tied the contest at 28-28 and held the 40-36 lead after 20 minutes.
- Lees-McRae quickly tied the game at 40 points and regained the two-point advantage on a layup from Ashley.
- Barton built their lead to eight points with 9:53 left in the second half, but the Bobcats cut the deficit to three in a little over a minute after a layup from Jaylin Stewart.
- Smith made things interesting down the stretch as Lees-McRae trailed by two points after Smith calmly hit three free throws with 26 seconds left. Barton made timely free throws also to collect the 97-72 win inside Wilson Gymnasium on Saturday.
- Barton and Lees-McRae traded the lead 20 times on the day with Barton collecting their sixth victory of the Conference Carolinas season.
- Smith went 9-15 from the field and 8-10 from the charity stripe for 28 points and added six assists. Ashley followed with 23 points on 10-12 shooting and recorded six rebounds. Ja'Quavian Florence joined Ashley and Smith in double-digit scoring with 11 points.
FOR THE BULLDOGS:
- McDonald guided Barton on the day with 28 points on 9-14 from the field and a perfect 8-8 from the free-throw line. Donaven Hairston followed closely with 26 points on 9-13 from the floor. Trevon Spencer had 18 points for the Bulldogs.
- Barton shot an impressive 72.0% (18-25) from the field in the second half and went 29-36 from the free-throw line in the contest.
UP NEXT:
Lees-McRae men's basketball travels to Wilson, North Carolina for a Conference Carolinas matchup with Barton on Saturday at 4 p.m.
For more information on Lees-McRae Athletics, follow the Bobcats on X (@LMCBobcats), on Facebook (Lees-McRae Athletics), and on Instagram (leesmcraeathletics).
