ANDERSON, S.C. – The senior guard duo of Randall Shaw and Gage Ellis combined to pour in 50 points, as Anderson overwhelmed North Greenville, 100-73, in nonconference men's basketball action, Tuesday night at the Abney Athletic Center.
Anderson improved to 3-2 on the season with its second straight win, while North Greenville (1-5), which was playing its second game in as many days and third contest in four days, dropped its fifth straight decision.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Shaw led all scorers with a season-high 26 points on the strength of 8-of-14 shooting from the field, including 6-of-12 from beyond the arc. The Greenville, S.C., native also handed out a season-best four assists. Ellis equaled his season-high with 24 points behind 8-of-10 accuracy from the field. He also connected on 6-of-7 from the charity stripe and swiped a season-high four steals. Sophomore forward Josh Livingston was 4-of-5 from the field and finished with nine points and led a balanced effort with five rebounds in just 15 minutes of action. Senior guard Andrew Boynton and freshman forward Satchel Hester each chipped in eight points apiece off the bench.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
Behind nine points from Ellis and a pair of 3-pointers from Shaw, the Trojans sprinted out to a commanding 21-5 lead inside the opening seven minutes of action and never trailed.
The Trojans held a double-digit lead and claimed a 31-14 advantage on a pair of free throws from freshman forward Matthew Brown with 7:51 remaining in the half. Later, with the Trojans holding a 33-22 edge with less than six minutes on the clock, the Crusaders mounted a comeback by scoring nine unanswered points over a three-minute span and trimmed AU's lead to just 33-31 at the 2:30 mark.
But with Ellis and Shaw each dropping in a pair of free throws and Bouton following an NGU basket with a jumper, the Trojans held a 39-36 lead at the half.
Second Half
The Trojans erased any doubt in the final decision by erupting for 61 points in the second half.
AU led, 76-49, midway through the second stanza and led by as many as 33 inside the final nine minutes.
ANDERSON STAT OF THE NIGHT
AU reached the century mark for the first time since defeating Newberry, 104-93, on Dec. 10, 2016.
NOTABLES
• The Trojans converted 17 North Greenville turnovers into 29 points
• AU lost the rebounding battle, 40-25, with North Greenville pulling down 15 offensive boards.
• The Trojans shot 55.6 percent on the night, including 71.9 percent in the second half.
• This was the first meeting between the two programs since Dec. 5, 2012.
• (AU stretched its win streak to seven straight against North Greenville.
• The Trojans improved to 9-3 overall against the Crusaders.
• The 100 points were the most scored by the Trojans since posting 99 points in a 105-99 setback at Lees-McRae on Dec. 30, 2017.
• After connecting on 12 treys in their first three games (four in each contest), the Trojans drained a season-high 13 treys against NGU just three days after draining 11 3-pointers in the win over Erskine.
• Senior guard Randall Shaw has moved into fourth place in the school record books with 1,360 points and is 177 points away from surpassing former standout Chandler Hash (2011-14) for third place.
• The Trojans improved to 3-1 against teams from Conference Carolinas
• All five starters for the Trojans are ranked in the top-25 in scoring average in the South Atlantic Conference.
• Senior guard Gage Ellis has averaged 16.7 points over the past three games
• Sophomore forward Josh Livingston has averaged 11.0 points and 6.3 rebounds over the last three contests.
UP NEXT
Anderson will take a week-long break before wrapping up its three-game homestand and opening conference action by playing host to Tusculum, Wednesday, Nov. 28 at the Abney Athletic Center. Tip-off versus the Pioneers is set for 7 p.m.