CENTRAL, S.C. – Lees-McRae men's basketball earned its first Conference Carolinas win of the season with a 110-82 victory at Southern Wesleyan on Saturday. Five Bobcats scored in double figures and
DJ Kent registered his first collegiate double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Lees-McRae –
110; Southern Wesleyan – 82
LOCATION: Tysinger Gymnasium – Central, South Carolina
RECORDS: Lees-McRae (2-5/1-3), Southern Wesleyan (2-6/1-2)
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Nigel Okwakol knocked down a three-pointer in the Bobcats' opening possession of today's game. SWU claimed the lead and held the 13-5 advantage at the 13:36 mark of the first half.
- Lees-McRae then went on a 8-0 run for the 15-13 and the two sides traded the lead throughout the opening half. The Bobcats led 40-37 after a layup from Drew Redmond at the end of the half.
- Okwakol connected on another three-pointer to give Lees-McRae the 47-46 lead with 17:37 left in the second half. The Bobcats used a 9-0 scoring run in a little over a minute for the 58-50 advantage and pulled away late for the 110-82 victory at Southern Wesleyan.
- Lees-McRae scored 70 points in the second half and all of the Bobcat players who stepped on the court scored today.
- Ja'Quavian Florence poured in a team-high 21 points on 8-13 shooting and added four rebounds and three assists. DJ Kent went 7-11 from the field for 19 points and added 10 rebounds and four assists.
- Matthew Knafelz had a career-high 12 points in 16 minutes off the bench and recorded three rebounds, three blocks, and two steals. Okwakol and Anthony Parker collected 11 points each in today's win.
- Lees-McRae shot a season-high 59.4% (41-69) from the floor with nine three-pointers and went 19-26 from the free-throw line. The Bobcats also assisted on 22 of their 41 baskets.
FOR THE WARRIORS:
- Eric Hackett had a game-high 26 points for the Warriors and RJ Bell followed with 16 points. Christopher Osobaye rounded out the Warriors in double-digit scoring with 11 points.
UP NEXT:
Lees-McRae men's basketball battles Converse next Saturday in Spartanburg, South Carolina 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).
