ANDERSON, S.C. – Behind a red-hot shooting afternoon and with five players reaching double figures in the scoring column, the Anderson men's basketball team posted its second win in three outings by trouncing Coker, 96-61, in South Atlantic Conference play, Saturday afternoon at the Abney Athletic Center.
Anderson improved to 14-11 overall and 8-9 in the conference, with its second win in three games, while Coker fell to 3-21 and 1-16 with its 12th straight loss.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Senior guard Gage Ellis led all scorers with 19 points in just 23 minutes of action, while pulling down seven rebounds. Guard Randall Shaw added 16 points and swiped a pair of steals, with senior guards Andrew Boynton and Kevin Simpson each netting 11 points apiece. Sophomore center Jason Edwards notched a career-high 11 points on 5-of-7 shooting from the field. Sophomore forward Josh Livingston nearly recorded his second career double-double by scoring nine points and grabbing a team-high eight rebounds
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
The game featured five lead changes and three ties – all inside the opening six minutes of the game – before junior point guard Shawn Benard snapped a 9-9 deadlock by dropping in a layup. The basket gave AU a lead it would not relinquish, as the Trojans later scored seven unanswered points in a two-minute span to turn a four-point edge into a 29-18 cushion with less than seven minutes remaining in the opening frame.
Second Half
After holding a 41-27 advantage at the break, the Trojans steadily built a 22-point lead (56-34) with more than 16 minutes left.
AU held at least a 20-point advantage the rest of the way, while taking an 81-42 lead – its' largest of the afternoon - at the 7:22 mark.
ANDERSON STAT OF THE GAME
The Trojans posted their highest field-goal accuracy of the season (56.5%).
NOTABLES
• The Trojans snapped a three-game home losing skid.
• AU won the rebounding battle, 42-33.
• The Trojans converted 18 Coker turnovers into 30 points.
• AU outscored the Cobras, 52-26, in the paint.
• AU has equaled its most home wins in a season since the 2013-14 campaign.
• The Trojans improved to 10-3 at home.
• AU won its seventh home game in their last 10 home contests.
• The Trojans' 55 second-half points marked their third-highest scoring effort in a half this season.
• The 27 first-half points surrendered to the Cobras equaled the second-lowest scoring half by an opponent this season.
• The 61 total points surrendered to Coker equaled the lowest-scoring game by an opponent this season.
UP NEXT
Following a six-day layoff, Newberry visits the Electric City on Senior Day. The Trojans will be seeking a sweep of the regular-season series with the Wolves after defeating Newberry, 93-90, on Jan. 12. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m.