CHARLOTTE, N.C.-Junior Jaren Haley had game-high totals of 19 points, four 3-pointers, and four steals to lead Barton College to an important 75-58 Conference Carolinas victory over host Coker College at the Charlotte Bobcats' Time Warner Cable Arena Friday afternoon.
The Bulldogs (13-9 Overall, 8-6 Conf.) remain ahead of the Cobras (8-12, 6-7) in the league standings after netting the win and continue to maintain a top-four position in the conference standings with four games remaining in the regular season. Barton will play its second straight game in the Queen City on Tuesday in a Conference Carolinas clash against Queens University of Charlotte starting at 7:30 p.m.
Haley scored 12 of his 19 points on four made treys. The 6-foot-1 guard from Woodbridge, Va., played a game-high 34 minutes after Barton point guards Greg Mammel (San Antonio, Texas) and Ethan Maske (Jacksonville, Ala.) both picked up two fouls within the first three minutes of play.
Senior L.J. Dunn (Raleigh, N.C.) continued his strong play with 18 points and eight boards. Sophomore Jarrett Jernigan (Virginia Beach, Va.) poured in 14 points as the trio of Haley, Dunn, and Jernigan were just seven points shy of outscoring Coker's whole team.
Haley (4), Jernigan (3), and Dunn (2) also combined for nine of the Bulldogs 10 steals. Coker committed 18 turnovers compared to 11 by Barton that resulted in 17 Bulldog points off miscues.
Trailing 15-11 early, Barton bolted in front with a 9-0 run that was started and finished with layups by junior Jo Jo Velez (Woodbridge, Va.). The Bulldogs kept the momentum pulling out to a 40-29 halftime advantage. Jernigan scored 10 of his 14 points in the first frame.
Barton stayed ahead throughout the second half, cresting at 22 (66-44) before completing the season series sweep. The Bulldogs nearly made half of their shots at 49.1% including 6-of-16 (37.5%) from 3-point distance. Coker shot at 43.6% accuracy but only 4-of-17 (23.5%) from behind the arc. Barton took advantage of nine more free throw attempts making 13 compared to only six by the Cobras.
Velez led the Bulldogs reserves with six points. Maske bucketed five. Velez and Maske each had four rebounds.
Senior Tom Wright (Sydney, Australia) led Coker with 12 points and six rebounds. Junior Delonte Doles (Newport News, Va.) scored 11 and senior Liam Kyle (Cleveland, Ohio) tallied 10 from off the bench. Doles added a game-high four assists.
