ANDERSON, S.C. – With four players reaching double figures in the scoring column, Anderson closed out its nonconference slate by edging Limestone, 78-74, in men's basketball action, Thursday night at the Abney Athletic Center.
"It's always good to win that last game before a break," said Anderson head coach Jeff Brookman. "I don't think we played our best basketball tonight, but good teams always find a way to grind out wins. Once again, we got big contributions from several guys."
Anderson (7-4) closed out the calendar year with its third straight victory and fourth triumph in five decisions, while capturing its first win over the Saints since the 2014-15 campaign. Limestone fell to 2-12 on the season.
Senior guard Shawn Benard led all players with 17 points and seven assists, while pulling down five rebounds. Sophomore Jason Edwards added a career-high 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the field, while forward Satchel Hester netted 14 points and grabbed five boards. The Lexington, N.C., native was 6-of-9 from the field.
Junior guard Quin Nottingham scored 12 points and equaled a career-high with five assists on the night. Junior guard Alex Keel tallied nine points and a career-best four assists, with freshman guard Mason Carver collecting a career-high, game-high nine rebounds.
Freshman forward Ben Gahlert led four Saints in double figures with 16 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Sophomore Jaedon Willis notched 15 points, with redshirt juniors Rudy Bibb-Boyd and Joseph Battle each scoring 11 points apiece.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
The Saints edged out to a 12-7 advantage inside the opening seven minutes, but AU responded by scoring six quick points in a 74-second span to grab just its second lead of the night, at 13-12. Limestone countered with a 12-3 spurt to open the largest lead of the night for either team, at 24-16, at the 8:01 mark.
Limestone nearly held the lead for the remainder of the half – and held a 38-31 advantage with 2:34 left in the half - before Keel connected on a 3-pointer and Edwards finished the half by scoring four straight for the Black and Gold to knot the score at 38-38 at the half.
Second Half
Hester's second trey of the night gave the Trojans a 49-48 advantage with just less than 16 minutes on the clock and although the score was tied eight more times during the final 15 minutes, AU would not trail the rest of the way.
With the score even at 55-55, Hester and Carver combined for six points, and Edwards capped a quick 8-2 surge that gave the Trojans their largest lead of the contest, at 63-57, midway through the final half. But AU was unable to build on its' lead and the Saints' Willis evened the score for the 12th time of the night (72-72) with a pair of free throws at the 3:20 mark.
Hester followed by sinking a jumper and dropping in a layup and that gave the Trojans the lead for good, but Limestone refused to go quietly. Gahlert's layup with two minutes left pulled the Saints within one possession and following a timeout and a Trojan miss on the other end, Limestone had an opportunity to knot the score or even take their first lead since the 16:38 mark inside the final minute.
Following a Saints' timeout, Battle was driving down the right side just outside the paint when Nottingham wrestled the ball away. Limestone was forced to foul twice to get the Trojans into the bonus and Nottingham sank two free throws with 5.8 seconds on the clock to clinch the win.
"We did a great job sharing and taking care of the basketball tonight," added Brookman. "We will enjoy our ten day break and come back fresh and ready to hit the ground running in conference play.'
ANDERSON STAT OF THE GAME
Merry Christmas - The Trojans dished out a season-high 19 assists on the night.
NOTABLES
• The game featured a dozen ties and seven lead changes, with neither team able to build more than an eight-point lead throughout the 40 minutes.
• AU committed a season-low seven turnovers.
• The Trojans out-rebounded Limestone, 38-35, and pulled down nine offensive rebounds.
• Shaw Benard has averaged 7.8 assists per game over the last four contests.
• The Trojans improved to 4-0 versus opponents from Conference Carolinas.
• The Saints were picked to finish seventh in the Conference Carolinas Preseason Coaches' Poll.
• The Trojans and Saints have met just six times since Anderson moved to the South Atlantic Conference, beginning with the 2010-11 campaign.
• Limestone will be joining the South Atlantic Conference next season.
• The Trojans snapped a three-game skid at the hands of the Saints.
UP NEXT
Following a 15-day layoff for Christmas and New Year's, the Trojans will take a brief one-game road trip to Tusculum on Saturday, Jan. 4. Tip-off versus the Pioneers in Greeneville, Tenn. is set for 4 p.m.
