BANNER ELK, N.C.-Lees-McRae College scored the game's last five points on 5-of-6 free throws in the final minute to squeak out a 67-62 Conference Carolinas victory over visiting Barton College on Saturday afternoon in Williams Gymnasium.
Barton rallied from a six-point halftime deficit and a pair of made free throws by senior L.J. Dunn (Raleigh, N.C.) knotted the score at 62-up heading into the final two minutes. The Bulldogs had a couple chances to take the lead but the Bobcats came up with a pair of steals on Barton inbounds plays.
Lees-McRae went to charity stripe on the ensuing possessions and freshman Tevin Friday (Gastonia, N.C.) made 1-of-2 and senior Sam Youse converted both of his attempts to lift the hosts ahead by three. Barton senior Greg Mammel (San Antonio, Texas) just missed tying the score on a desperation three-pointer off an offensive rebound but LMC sophomore Daniel Sepokas (Illawong, Australia) came up with the defensive board and sealed the victory with two more made freebees in the final seconds.
The Bobcats (4-12 Overall; 1-8 Conf.) picked up their first league win and snapped an 11-game losing streak that started in November. The Bulldogs (10-8, 5-5) were unable to complete the season series sweep after defeating LMC 93-76 on Dec. 4. Barton sophomore Gerald Boston (Burlington, N.C.) and junior R.D. Dowdy (Chapel Hill, N.C.), who combined for 26 points in the first meeting, were both sidelined due to injury.
A three-pointer by junior Jaren Haley (Woodbridge, Va.) with 3:48 left was the Bulldogs last field goals. Barton was held to 20-of-55 (36.4%) shooting including a chilly 2-of-11 (18.2%) from three-point distance. Lees-McRae made 23-of-54 (42.6) field goals and 6-of-13 (46.2%) from behind the arc.
Haley led all scorers with 19 points. Dunn followed with 18 points making 6-of-8 attempts from the floor and all six tries from the free throw line. Sophomore Jarrett Jernigan (Virginia Beach, Va.) followed with 10 points.
Dunn just missed another double-double with a game-high nine rebounds. Jernigan flirted with his own double-double by pulling down eight boards. Barton dominated the backboards 44-30.
Senior Adam McFerran (Stow, Ohio) paced Lees-McRae with 16 points. Youse bucketed 15 points from a reserve role as the Bobcats bench outscored Barton's 35-10. Sepokas chipped in 10 points and a game-high seven assists. McFerran swiped three of the Bobcats 10 steals as Barton committed 18 turnovers. Lees-McRae turned the ball over 25 times in the first meeting but did a much better job protecting the ball Saturday with only 13 miscues.
A sophomore Corey Young (Bluff City, Tenn.) pull-up jumper as time expired provided Lees-McRae with a 37-31 halftime advantage after a close first period. All five lead changes occurred in the first 20 minutes.
Barton concludes a three-game road swing at archrival Mount Olive College on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. The Make-A-Wish fundraiser game for both institutions is also a matchup of two teams tied for fourth place in the league standings. The top four seeds in the Conference Carolinas Tournament will host first round games.
