ANDERSON, S.C. – With guards Quin Nottingham and Crosby James II combining for 51 points, the Anderson men's basketball team stretched its win streak to five games by outpacing Newberry, 81-78, Wednesday night at the Abney Athletic Center.
"It was a much-needed home conference win against a quality opponent," said Anderson head coach Jeff Brookman. "With the exception of four or five minutes in both halves, I thought we played solid on both ends. Once again, the guys were able to make enough winning plays the last five minutes. We will enjoy this one until midnight and then begin our preparation for Lenoir Rhyne."
Anderson (14-7, 9-6 SAC) won its seventh game in eight outings and claimed its 10th win in 13 decisions, while earning a split of the regular-season series. Newberry (11-10, 7-8 SAC) suffered its third straight loss and fourth in five outings.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Nottingham poured in a game-high 31 points on 10-of-17 shooting from the field, including 7-of-12 from beyond the arc, and pulled down a career-high 13 rebounds. James posted 20 points on 8-of-15 shooting from the field, with sophomore forward Satchel Hester adding 13 points and five rebounds. Senior guard Shawn Benard tallied nine points and dished out a game-high seven assists.
Junior forward Angelo Sales, Jr. led five Wolves in double figures, with 17 points and shared game-high honors with 13 boards. Teammate Marcus Ford added 14 points, while senior guard Luke Gibson tallied 13. Sophomore guard TJ Brown netted a dozen points, with senior guard Marshall Lange chipping in 10 points.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
Early in the contest it was AU's long-range accuracy versus Newberry's free throws, with the Trojans connecting on four of their first five 3-point attempts to jump on top, 16-12, with nearly six minutes gone in the opening half.
Back-to-back treys, first from Hester then from James sparked an 8-2 surge that boosted AU's advantage to 24-17, with 11:22 on the clock and Nottingham's long 3-pointer from nearly straightaway gave the Trojans a double-digit, 31-21, edge at the 6:22 mark.
The Wolves trimmed AU's lead to 33-29 before James and Nottingham connected on four free throws to rebuild the cushion to eight. But Newberry battled back to within, 39-37, behind its second straight 8-2 run in the closing minutes.
Second Half
With the Wolves connecting on 5-of-6 from the field to open the second stanza, AU was unable to gain separation until Nottingham nailed back-to-back 3s and James dropped in a layup with 12:05 remaining to give the Trojans a 60-50 advantage.
But Newberry responded with a 12-1 run over the next five minutes to claim its first lead since the 18:48 mark of the first half, at 62-61. The Trojans regrouped and steadily pushed back out to a double-digit, 78-68, advantage on Nottingham's 3-point dagger from the left side with less than two minutes on the clock.
Each team was 3-of-4 from the charity stripe inside the final 36 seconds, with Newberry getting as close as one possession before Nottingham sealed the win with a pair of free throws with eight seconds left.
STAT OF THE NIGHT
The Trojans were 9-of-17 (52.9%) from the free throw stripe, while Newberry was 11-of-21 (52.4%).
NOTABLES
• AU's five-game win streak is the longest since winning five straight during the 2014-15 season.
• Quin Nottingham notched his second double-double of the season.
• Shawn Benard has handed out at least four assists in eight consecutive games.
• The Trojans have swiped at least five steals in eight consecutive games.
• The Trojans have connected on at least seven 3-pointers in nine straight games, including a season-high 13 treys at Carson-Newman.
• Newberry out-rebounded the Trojans, 44-35, and recorded 16 offensive rebounds.
• Shawn Benard needs four points to become just the 15th player in program history to reach the 1,000-point plateau.
• AU won its sixth game in eight meetings with Newberry.
• The Trojans claimed their 15th win in the last 21 meetings with the Wolves.
• AU improved to 8-2 at home this season
UP NEXT
AU will hit the road for two games, beginning Saturday afternoon at Lenoir-Rhyne. The Trojans will be looking to earn a sweep of the season series after defeating the Bears, 87-79, at the Abney Center in mid-December. Tip-off is scheduled for 4 p.m.
