MARS HILL, N.C. – The Anderson men's basketball team scored a season-high 51 points in the second-half to overcome a four-point halftime deficit and snap a brief two-game skid by knocking off Mars Hill, 84-77, in South Atlantic Conference action Saturday afternoon at Stanford Arena.
"It feels good to get a big road conference win," said Anderson head coach Jeff Brookman. "We got good contributions from several guys. I thought Mason Carver, Alex Keel and Jason Edwards all made a lot of big winning plays in the second half. This was a total team win and the guys deserve all the credit."
Anderson (8-6, 3-5 SAC) claimed its seventh consecutive win over the Lions and evened its road record at 4-4 on the year, while Mars Hill slipped to 7-7 overall and 5-3 in league action, while dropping its second decision in three outings.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Senior guard Shawn Benard paced the Trojans with 22 points and dished out a game-high five assists, while collecting four rebounds. Junior guard Quin Nottingham added 21 points and swiped a pair of steals, with sophomore forward Satchel Hester netting 13 points. Junior guard Alex Keel nearly posted his first double-double of the season with a season-high 10 points and a game-high eight rebounds, while freshman guard Mason Carver came off the bench to notch eight points and grab six boards. Sophomore center Jason Edwards scored six points and equaled a career high with seven rebounds.
Mars Hill senior guard Ja'Shawn Brooks led all scorers with 25 points and recorded a team-best seven rebounds, with teammate Javonte Cooke scoring 11 points. Junior guard Jamal Bryant tallied 10 points and five rebounds.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
Both teams got off to a slow start on the offensive end, with the Trojans connecting on just 1-of-6 from the field to begin the game, while Mars Hill was just a little more accurate by going 2-for-8 and both team combined for seven turnovers in the first four-plus minutes.
Keel dropped in a pair of free throws at the 16:13 mark to snap the game's first tie and Benard's layup a minute later gave AU an early 8-4 advantage. Following a jumper by MHU's Brooks, the Trojans reeled off seven unanswered points as part of a 13-6 surge that was fueled by a flurry of 3-pointers and saw the Black and Gold grab a 21-12 lead with 11:25 on the clock. Nottingham netted eight points during the breakout, with Hester also connecting on a 3-pointer.
But midway through the frame, the Trojans suffered through a scoring drought that lasted nearly five minutes and Mars Hill countered with a 22-5 scoring outburst if its own that enabled the Lions to claim a 34-26 advantage with more than four minutes left in the half.
Nottingham's third 3-pointer of the contest slowed the Lions and pulled the Trojans back within five and, despite the dry spell, AU trailed just 37-33 at the half after bouncing back to outscore Mars Hill over the final 3:46.
Second Half
The Trojans carried over the late first-half momentum into the second stanza by opening the frame with an impressive 20-8 run that saw Nottingham, Hester and Benard each score five points apiece. Carver capped the decisive surge with a 3-pointer at the 14:02 mark and the Trojans would not trail the rest of the afternoon.
AU increased its lead and took a 64-53 lead on a 3-pointer by Nottingham, before Mars Hill trimmed the advantage to 66-61 on Cooke's layup with just less than eight minutes left in the contest. But Benard answered for the Trojans by knocking down a pair of free throws and Keel followed a Brooks' jumper by scoring seven straight points – giving the Black and Gold its' largest cushion of the afternoon – at 75-63, with 4:12 remaining.
The Lions closed within 81-75 with 38 seconds left, but Benard and Edwards combined to go 3-for-4 from the charity stripe in the final seconds to secure the win.
ANDERSON STAT OF THE GAME
The Trojans connected on a season-high 12 treys on the afternoon, while their 42.9 percent (12-of-28) accuracy marked their second-highest percentage of the season.
NOTABLES
• The victory marked AU's first win of the season when trailing at halftime.
• AU won the rebounding battle, 37-32.
• The Trojans posted a 39.3 percent (11-of-28) field-goal shooting percentage in the opening half, while blistering the nets at a 60.7% clip (17-of-28) in the second half.
• The Trojans connected on a then season-high 11 treys against Wingate just last Saturday.
• The Trojans have handed out double-digit assists in seven consecutive games.
• Anderson holds a 20-10 advantage in the all-time series.
• The Trojans have claimed 18 of the last 20 meetings with Mars Hill.
• AU snapped a four-game road winless streak.
• The Trojans have won four straight at Stanford Arena.
UP NEXT
Anderson returns home for a two-game South Atlantic Conference homestand when the Trojans play host to Coker on Wednesday and league-leading LMU invades the Electric City on Jan. 18. Tip-off versus the Cobras at the Abney Center is set for 7:30 p.m.
