Anderson, S.C. – No. 17 Anderson University used a 7-0 run to put away the feisty Bulldogs of Wingate, 66-54, on a Wednesday evening South Atlantic Conference tussle in the Abney Athletic Center.
With the victory, the Trojans move to 11-2 overall and 6-1 in SAC play, while the Bulldogs fall to 10-4 overall and 4-3 in conference action.
Three Trojans reached double-digit scoring with senior Alexy Mollenhauer and junior Alexis Tate sharing team-high honors with 14 points apiece. Mollenhauer and Tate pulled down seven and four rebounds, respectively. Senior Madison Baggett netted 13 points on 4-of-8 shooting, including 2-of-4 from behind the arc. Baggett also chased down five rebounds and dished out two assists for the Black and Gold.
Wingate's Destiny Coleman scored a game-high 15 points, while teammate Hannah Clark chipped in 13 points for the Bulldogs.
The nip and tuck affair came down to big defensive stops by the Trojans that didn't allow a basket in the final 7 minutes of the fourth period. Baggett's late fourth period three-point basket and senior Amari Grevious's offensive rebound and put-back with 2:07 to go was the final dagger.
Anderson's bench played well with sophomore Valencia Carroll scoring eight points and coming away with two steals in nine minutes of action. Freshman J'Mya Cutter provided a lift scoring three points, recording an assist, steal and rebound in four minutes of play. Grevious finished the game with six points and a game-high eight rebounds.
"I thought our bench stepped up for us big tonight both on the boards and hitting some big shots, said head coach Jonathon Barbaree. " Defensively, I thought we did a solid job but still have to clean up our communication on the floor."
The Black and Gold travel to SAC opponent Mars Hill on Saturday. Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m. at Stanford Arena.
