NEWBERRY, S.C. – In a game that featured a combined 53 fouls whistled, including 36 in the second half, Newberry snapped a three-game skid with a narrow, 88-84, win past Anderson in South Atlantic Conference men's basketball action, Saturday afternoon at Eleazer Arena.
Anderson, which fell to 7-17 overall and 5-11 in the conference, erased a 12-point second-half deficit, but was unable to complete the comeback and suffered its fifth straight setback. Newberry improved to 12-12 overall and 6-10 in league play, while earning a split of the season series.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Junior guard Gage Ellis led the Trojans with 23 points, while guard Andrew Boynton equaled a season-high with 15 points. The junior from Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., matched his career-high with six rebounds and dished out a career-high five assists, while swiping a pair of steals. Junior forward Jeremy Bouton posted his second straight double-double with 14 points and a career-best 14 rebounds, with freshman guard Myliek Durham netting a season-high 10 points.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
Boynton scored five points inside the first five minutes of the contest, as the Trojans jumped out to an early 9-6 advantage. Newberry tied the contest a little more than a minute later, but the Trojans eased out to a 16-10 lead at the 11:54 mark on a layup from Durham before the Wolves connected on two quick 3-pointers to again knot the score midway through the half.
Josh Livingston broke the deadlock with a layup, but the Wolves countered with a 14-2 outburst over the next five minutes to build a double-digit, 30-20 lead with less than five minutes on the clock. Newberry pushed out to its largest lead of the contest, at 35-22, with less than two minutes remaining and held a 38-27 halftime advantage.
Second Half
Still trailing by 10 with 16:34 on the clock, the Trojans battled back to even the score for the third time of the afternoon, at 45 apiece, behind seven points from Ellis and a 3-pointer from Bouton. But the Wolves quickly went back ahead by double-digits before AU pulled even at 57-57 midway through the final half.
After Newberry again jumped out to an eight-point lead with less than eight minutes left on the clock, AU climbed within a single possession on six occasions but was unable to overtake the Wolves. Trailing, 83-74, with just over a minute to play, Boynton nailed back-to-back 3-pointers to get AU within 83-80 and following a free throw on the other end, Bouton dropped in a layup to set the score at 84-82. Newberry's Xavier Hill connected on a pair of free throws before Bouton again answered with a lay-in. With AU again forced to foul in the final moments, Newberry's James Stepp knocked down a pair of free throws to set the final score.
ANDERSON STAT OF THE DAY
The Trojans pulled down a season-high 15 offensive rebounds.
NOTABLES
• Anderson outrebounded the Wolves, 43-30.
• The +13 rebounding margin was the highest of the season for the Trojans.
• AU outscored the Wolves, 24-7, in second-chance points.
• The Trojans forced 11 turnovers, but committed 18 miscues.
UP NEXT
The Trojans visit Mars Hill on Wednesday in the middle game of a three-game conference road swing. AU will be looking for a sweep of the regular-season series after knocking off the Lions, 88-76, a month ago at the Abney Center. Tip-off versus the Lions is set for 8 p.m.
