ANDERSON, S.C. – Five Trojans reached double figures in the scoring column for the third time this season, but it was not enough to offset Lenoir-Rhyne's long-range accuracy, as the Anderson men's basketball team opened a two-game South Atlantic Conference homestand with a 94-85 setback to the Bears, Sunday afternoon at the Abney Athletic Center.
Anderson (7-7, 5-3 SAC) saw its win streak halted at two, while Lenoir-Rhyne (6-7, 5-3 SAC) snapped a two-game skid.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
The game featured 10 lead changes inside the first 13 minutes, with neither team able to build more than a two-possession lead. The Trojans dominated the glass by outrebounding Lenoir-Rhyne, 41-31, and outscored the Bears, 36-16 in the paint, while L-R was 15-of-27 (55.6 percent) from beyond the arc and converted 15 AU turnovers into 18 points.
Freshman center Carlos Dotson posted his fifth double-double of the season with a team-high 24 points and shared game-high rebounding honors with 11 boards, including six on the offensive end. Sophomore guard Randall Shaw, who was coming off an impressive career-high 45-point effort four days ago at Brevard, notched his first career double-double with 23 points and shared game-high rebounding honors with a career-high 11 boards. Junior guard Maurice Howard added 14 points and three assists, with sophomore forward Jeremy Bouton and freshman guard Christian Jeffords each chipping in 11 points.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
The Bears got off to a quick start by scoring the first five points of the contest, before Dotson and Shaw countered with seven unanswered points for the Trojans to give AU its first lead of the contest. But the advantage was brief, as L-R junior guard Billy Bales connected on the Bears' second 3-pointer of the opening four minutes to give Lenoir-Rhyne an 8-7 edge at the 15:52 mark.
With the Bears holding a 12-10 lead three minutes later, Jeffords sandwiched back-to-back 3-pointers around a traditional three-point play by L-R senior guard JacQues Chambers to regain the advantage for the Black and Gold. Lenoir-Rhyne quickly responded with five straight points before Bouton and Howard combined for a trey and a layup to give Anderson its final lead of the contest, 21-20, with 7:20 remaining in the opening half.
Lenoir-Rhyne countered with a 14-5 run over the next four minutes that gave the visitors a lead they would not relinquish, as the Bears sank four 3-pointers to fuel the surge, including three from senior guard Darrion Evans. Howard drained a shot at the buzzer from near the midcourt stripe to set the halftime score at 39-36.
Second Half
The Bears used a 9-2 outburst early in the second half to build a double-digit lead, with AU trimming the deficit to 61-54 on Dotson's old-fashioned three-point play midway through the final stanza.
But L-R rebuilt a 13-point advantage and held a 78-65 lead with less than four minutes on the clock before the Trojans closed within four behind a 14-5 run than was fueled by Shaw's 10 points in a two-minute span and was capped by Bouton's three point play with 1:17 on the clock.
After the Bears' Ben Zemonek went 1-of-2 from the line with 72 seconds left, the Trojans committed a pair of costly turnovers and Lenoir-Rhyne was 8-of-9 at the free throw line inside the final minute to seal the win.
ANDERSON STAT OF THE DAY
The +10-rebound margin marked the biggest rebounding advantage of the season for the Trojans.
NOTABLES
• The Trojans are 64-of-136 (47.1%) from beyond the arc over the last six games.
• AU has averaged 89.5 points per game in their last six contests.
• Five AU players reached double figures in the scoring column for the third time this season.
• Randall Shaw has averaged 34.0 points and 9.5 rebounds over the last two games.
• Carlos Dotson has averaged 18.0 points and 8.0 boards over the last two games.
• Despite having to foul late in the game, the Trojans equaled Lenoir-Rhyne with 19 made free throws on the afternoon.
• The Trojans have made more free throws than five of their last seven opponents and more than six of their last nine opponents.
UP NEXT
The Trojans wrap up the homestand when preseason SAC favorite Lincoln Memorial invades the Abney Center on Wednesday. Tip-off versus the Railsplitters is set for 8 p.m.
