ANDERSON, S.C. – The Anderson men's basketball team went toe to toe with No. 16 Lincoln Memorial, with the Railsplitters needing free throws in the late moments to fend off the Trojans, 80-75, in South Atlantic Conference play, Wednesday night at the Abney Athletic Center.
Anderson slipped to 10-12 overall and 7-11 in league play, as the Trojans' bid for their second win this season over a nationally-ranked team fell just shy. Lincoln Memorial (17-3, 14-6 SAC) won its third straight decision and claimed its eighth victory in nine outings.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Forward Parker Dortch poured in a game-high 25 points, including 18 in the first half, and pulled down a team-high seven rebounds, while handing out a pair of assists. The Columbus, N.J., native was 11-of-17 from the field on the night. Guard Crosby James II added 19 points and was 8-of-9 from the free throw line. He also swiped a pair of steals. Freshman guard Myles Jenkins posted 10 points, with fellow guard Mason Carver adding eight points and dishing out a team-high four assists.
Sophomore Chase Rankin led five Railsplitters in double figures with 19 points, while freshman Jordan Walters recorded a double-double with 15 points and 10 boards. LMU junior Jordan Guest also tossed in 15 points.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
In a back-and-forth struggle, the Railsplitters needed every bit of their 62 percent accuracy from the field to keep pace with the Trojans, who shot better than 51 percent over the first 20 minutes.
AU was 7-of-10 inside the opening seven minutes, with Myles Jenkins' layup snapping the third tie of the contest and giving the Trojans a brief 17-15 lead. But LMU countered with eighth unanswered points to claim a 23-17 advantage with less than 12 minutes left in the frame.
Rahim Jenkins and Carver then sandwiched a pair of 3-pointers around an LMU basket and the score was knotted for a fifth time, at 25 apiece, before the Railsplitters crept out to a 32-29 edge at the 6:58 mark.
The Trojans then erupted for 11 straight points over the next three minutes, with Dortch supplying the last eight points of the surge, and the Trojans found themselves with their largest lead of the night (41-32) with just less than four minutes on the clock. But the Railsplitters closed the half on a 9-2 run to set the halftime score at 43-41.
Second Half
The score was deadlocked three times over the first seven minutes of the second half, with neither squad able to build more than a two possession advantage until Lincoln Memorial scored seven straight points to take a 62-55 with 11:10 left.
Led by James' seven points over the next five minutes, the Trojans climbed back within one (67-66) on Jalen Hillery's layup, but it was as close as the Black and Gold would get, as the Railsplitters opened up a six-point lead and connected on just enough free throws by going 4-for-6 inside the final 2:30 to keep the Trojans at bay.
ANDERSON STAT OF THE DAY
The score was tied nine times and the game featured 13 lead changes, including seven in the second half.
NOTABLES
• The Trojans were facing their fourth nationally-ranked team of the season and were playing their sixth game of the season against a nationally-ranked team.
• AU was bidding for its second win this season over a nationally-ranked team and its 10th home win over a ranked team since the 2008-09 season.
• Lincoln Memorial holds a 20-7 advantage in the overall series.
• Parker Dortch flirted with his second double-double of the season.
UP NEXT
The Trojans travel to UVA Wise, Saturday afternoon, before returning to the Abney Athletic Center for a two-game homestand. AU will be looking to sweep the regular-season series with UVA Wise after defeating the Cavs, 104-95, in
November at the Abney Center. Tip-off at the Prior Convocation Center is slated for 4 p.m.
