HARROGATE, Tenn. - Despite freshman guard Randall Shaw's game-high 27 points, the Anderson men's basketball team dropped an 85-72 decision to 16th-ranked and league-leading Lincoln Memorial in South Atlantic Conference action, Wednesday night at Tex Turner Arena.
Anderson slipped to 5-10 overall and 3-6 in league play with its second consecutive setback, while Lincoln Memorial (13-2, 9-0 SAC) won its third straight decision and 13th of its last 14 outings.
Shaw was 9-of-17 from the field, including 6-of-9 from beyond
the arc, while finishing four points shy of his career-best effort.
Sophomore guard Maurice Howard handed out a career-high 10 assists
and swiped a pair of steals, with sophomore guard Tre' Fields
tallying 13 points on 5-of-10 shooting. Junior guard Lex Davis
added 11 points, while the freshman forward duo of Jeremy Bouton
and Marquez Fisher each pulled down six rebounds.
Junior guard Luquon Choice led the Railsplitters with 26 points,
while forward Curtis McMillion added 22 points. Senior guard Jalen
Steele netted 13 points and Gerel Simmons chipped in 10. Sophomore
forward Dorian Pinson collected a game-high 11 rebounds.
The teams got off to a slow start on the offensive end, as they missed their first eight field goal attempts and combined to go just 1-for-9 in the opening three minutes until AU sophomore guard Maurice Howard broke the ice with a jumper to give the Trojans a brief 2-0 lead at the 16:53 mark.
Lincoln Memorial's Jalen Steele answered with a 3-pointer on the other end for the Railsplitters less than 30 seconds later to spark a 14-4 run by LMU over the next 4:28, with the Trojans countering with seven unanswered points of their own to trim the deficit to just one midway through the first half. Shaw, Fields and Fisher each dropped in a basket to fueled the surge.
The next five minutes saw three ties and three lead changes, with AU claiming a 28-24 edge on a pair of free throws from junior center Rakish Taylor with 5:17 on the clock, but the Railsplitters closed the half with a decisive 22-3 scoring outburst to claim a 46-31 halftime advantage.
The Trojans got as close as 10 in the opening moments of the second half, but were unable to close the gap any further over the final 19 minutes of the contest.
Anderson opens a two-game conference homestand by playing host
to Wingate on Saturday at the Abney Athletic Center. Tip-off is
scheduled for 4 p.m
