ANDERSON, S.C. – Using an early second-half run, the Anderson men's basketball team overcame a five-point deficit, then survived erratic free throw shooting down the stretch to open a two-game South Atlantic Conference homestand with an 84-82 win over UVA Wise, Saturday afternoon at the Abney Athletic Center.
"Extremely proud of our effort tonight!" said Anderson head coach Jimmie Williams. "We had one of the hottest teams in our league come into Abney and we knew it would be a test. We didn't shoot it well, but still found a way to win a close one. Huge stat of the night for us was 50 points in the paint. Mack (Burgett) and Myles (Jenkins) were fantastic. They (UVA Wise) did a really good job of guarding us on the perimeter so in the second half we really turned to throwing it inside and ultimately, that was the difference."
Anderson improved to 7-13 overall and 4-6 in league action with its second straight win and its third win in four outings, while UVA Wise fell to 12-8 and 5-6 with its first loss in four decisions.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Junior forward Mack Burgett shared game-high honors with a career-high 24 points on 10-of-13 shooting from the field, while pulling down seven rebounds and dishing out four assists. Sophomore guard Myles Jenkins came off the bench to add 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting accuracy and finished just shy of recording his seventh double-double of the season by grabbing nine boards. He also handed out a pair of assists.
Forward Jalen Hillery netted 17 points on 6-of-10 shooting, while senior guard Mason Carver nearly recorded his first career double-double by tallying nine points and nine rebounds. The Lexington, S.C. native finished the afternoon with a game-high five assists. Sophomore guard Jacksen Greco nearly had his second double-double of the campaign after notching eight points and nine rebounds.
UVA Wise freshman guard Bradley Dean, the league's leading scorer at 20.1 points per contest, scored just three points in the opening half, but finished with 24 points to share game-high scoring honors. Freshman guard Calen Lightford added 20 points for the Cavaliers, with sophomore guard Ben Bryson netting 12 points. Forward Luke Lawson recorded a game-high 11 rebounds.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
With the Trojans misfiring on four of their first five field goal attempts, UVA Wise squirted out to a quick 7-2 lead with just a little more than two minutes gone. But AU countered with eight unanswered points, with Burgett supplying half the points, to claim a brief 10-7 advantage at the 14:48 mark – only to see the Cav's Bryson and Dean respond with back-to-back layups to regain the lead for UVA Wise (11-10).
Despite connecting on just 2-of-7 three-pointers at that point, the Trojans managed to push out to their largest lead of the game, at 25-17, on back-to-back scores from Jenkins – first on a long 3-pointer from the left wing, then on a short jumper with 7:17 left on the clock.
With both teams struggling from long range and combining to go just 4-for-22 (18.2%) on 3-point attempts, the Cavaliers roared back with 13 unanswered points over the next four-plus minutes and staked a 30-25 lead with less than three minutes on the clock.
Hillery and Denbow slowed the Cavs with consecutive scores, but UVA Wise's Rron Ukaj dropped in the final basket of the frame to give the visitors a 32-29 edge at the break.
Second Half
UVa Wise matched its largest lead of the contest, at 37-32, less than two minutes into the second half, before the Trojans erupted for nine straight points as part of a 13-2 scoring outburst in a three-minute span, with Burgett fueling the rally with nine points, as AU claimed a 45-39 lead.
The score would be tied two more times, but the Trojans would not trail the rest of the way.
AU matched its largest lead, at eight, two more times – only to see the Cavs battle back to knot the score at 53-53 and again at 58-58, but Carver's third field goal of the afternoon snapped the final deadlock and gave the Trojans a lead they would not relinquish over the final nine minutes.
With the Trojans' lead hovering between two and eight points, AU led by six (79-73) entering the final minute following a free throw by Jenkins. The Trojans then made three of their next four from the stripe to keep the pressure on UVA Wise, but then faltered and misfired on 4-of-6 free throws over the final 32 seconds to leave the door open for the Cavaliers.
Fortunately, UVA Wise was unable to capitalize and missed two consecutive jumpers, before Greco made 1-of-2 from the line and Lightford nailed a 3-pointer from the left wing just before the buzzer to set the final score.
"Our crowds keep getting bigger and bigger," added Williams. "What a blessing to have the Trojan Army in full force for second semester conference games! Our game Wednesday is going to be sold out! Once Mason found out tonight, we knew it would be tough in a close game to win without a point guard on the floor down the stretch. I love that I can ask a lot of these guys to play different positions and have guys step up in different areas. They sure did tonight. Wasn't perfect but we gave all we had. To God be the glory. I love this team!"
ANDERSON STAT OF THE DAY
The Trojans were just 5-of-10 from the free throw line in the final 50 seconds.
NOTABLES
• The Trojans' 55-point second half marked AU's second-largest scoring half of the season and its highest second-half tally of the year.
• The game marked AU's second matchup against a Mountain Division rival.
• AU's nine turnovers were the second-lowest total of the season.
• Just one game after going a season-high 22-of-39 (56.4%) from long range, the Trojans were just 5-of-24 (20.8%) from beyond the arc – their second-lowest accuracy of the season.
• AU outrebounded the Cavaliers, 44-35, and pulled down nine offensive rebounds.
• AU leads the brief all-time series with the Cavaliers, 4-2, with each team defending its home court in every matchup.
• The Trojans earned their fifth home win of the season.
• UVA Wise joined the SAC for the 2019-20 campaign after moving from the Mountain East Conference following the 2018-19 season.
• The Trojans have shot at least 47.8% from the field in four consecutive games.
• The Trojans have outrebounded their last four opponents.
• The Trojans saw their four-game streak of double-digit 3-pointers come to an end.
• Mason Carver has dished out at least four assists in four straight games.
UP NEXT
The Trojans will close out their two-game SAC homestand on Wednesday by welcoming Newberry to the Electric City. AU will be looking to avenge an earlier, 62-53, setback to the Wolves at Eleazer Arena. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
