ANDERSON, S.C. - With a balanced offensive attack and a stellar defensive effort in the first half, the Anderson University men's basketball team continued its three-game homestand by overwhelming Tusculum, 75-65, in South Atlantic Conference action Wednesday night at the Abney Athletic Center.

Anderson (10-11, 6-9 SAC) won its second straight contest and improved to 10-1 all-time versus the Pioneers, while moving to 7-3 at home on the season. Tusculum fell to 4-16 overall and 4-11 in conference action with its second straight defeat.

The first matchup of the season between the two teams saw the Trojans win the battle pf the boards, 34-29, and hold Tusculum to 38.3 percent shooting from the field, including 25 percent in the decisive first half.

Senior Myson Jones led the Trojans offensively with 17 points, while dishing out a team-high four assists. Senior center Chris Ross, coming off his second double-double of the season, added 15 points, including 10 in the first half. The 6-foot-8 center connected on six-of-seven attempts from the field. Senior Nick Jackson tallied 12 points and six rebounds, while freshman guard Matthew McClain, who posted his first career double-double last Saturday in the win over Newberry, narrowly missed a double-double with 10 points and a team-high eight boards.

Tusculum junior guard Javon Price poured in a game-high 22 points on the strength of six 3-pointers. Sophomore center Chase Mounce recorded a double-double for the Pioneers, with 15 points and a game-best 10 rebounds.

With Ross dropping in the first basket of the contest, the Trojans led wire-to-wire and jumped out to a quick 10-2 lead at the 16:49 mark on back-to-back 3-pointers from Jones and McClain. Following a put-back by Tusculum's Matt Shown, Trojan freshman Tre' Fields sandwiched his two 3-pointers of the night around a trey from Price to boost Anderson's advantage to 16-7 less than four minutes into the opening half.

Following a steal by McClain, Fields found himself on the receiving end of a fast-break assist, as he scored his eighth straight point to give AU its first double-digit lead, at 18-7, with 14:29 on the clock. After Price connected on another 3-pointer to trim AU's lead to seven, Ross sparked a 14-3 outburst over the next eight minutes that saw the Trojans claim a 32-13 cushion with 6:22 remaining in the half. Jackson added five points during the breakout, while McClain recorded an impressive reverse dunk to help fuel the surge.

Both teams then struggled to find their rhythm on the offensive end, as the Trojans claimed a 35-17 lead at halftime.

Anderson opened the second half with a 9-3 run to take a 44-20 advantage, marking its largest lead of the night. The Trojans maintained the double-digit cushion until the Pioneers crept back within 71-62 with 1:29 remaining in the game. AU was just 4-of-8 from the line in the final 90 seconds, but Tusculum was unable to capitalize, as the Pioneers were just one-of-four from the field in the closing moments.

The Trojans wrap up their three-game homestand Saturday afternoon, as Wingate invades the Abney Athletic Center for a 4 p.m. tip-off. Anderson will be looking for a sweep of the season series after knocking off the Bulldogs, 76-73, in this season's first meeting between the two teams.