Box Score
by John Hackney
WILSON, N.C.-Sophomore forward Evan Shelton did not miss a shot from the floor and junior forward Keith Manley came up with two huge blocks Saturday night as Barton College clipped feisty Lees-McRae College 74-71 in overtime.
The Conference Carolinas men's basketball victory vaulted the Bulldogs to 13-5 overall and 5-3 in league action while the Bobcats left at 5-12 overall and 5-4 in conference play. Barton hosts Queens University of Charlotte Thursday night at 7:30 in the Dog House.
The 6-foot-6 tandem of Shelton and Manley provided steady play on opposite ends of the court to help Barton prevail. Shelton hit all three shots from the floor and went 6-of-6 from the foul line for a career-high 12 points and pulled six rebounds, including five offensive boards. Manley got the Bulldogs off to a good start offensively and finished with 11 points and eight rebounds, but he was a man-child defensively, where he blocked a career-best seven shots.
Shelton was the only Bulldog to be perfect on his charity shooting. Barton was a miserable 16-of-34 (47.1 percent) from the foul line and even worse from beyond the 3-point arc (2-of-15 for 13.3 percent). Meanwhile, it was bombs away for Lees-McRae, who cashed in 9-of-22 (40.9 percent) 3-pointers to outscore the Bulldogs 27-6 from downtown.
Barton won the game with its inside play, posting a whopping 40-12 margin on points in the paint and a 53-42 rebounding advantage. The Bulldogs also had a 23-12 edge in points off turnovers.
"We were very fortunate to win that game tonight," Barton head coach Ron Lievense said. "We made a lot of mistakes out there."
Senior guard Jaren Haley pumped in a team-high 16 points for Barton, now 6-1 at home. Junior guard Gerald Boston added 14 points, five assists and four steals. For the Bobcats, B.J. Battle tallied 17 points, Daniel Sepokas 13 and Asad Lamot 11. Lamot added seven assists.
Neither team shot the ball well, with Barton finishing 28-of-73 for 38.4 percent and Lees-McRae was 20-of-58 for 34.5 percent.
Lees-McRae took a 2-0 lead, but that was the only time it led until the first basket of overtime. That was the last time it would lead, although the game did come down to a final shot, as it had in regulation.
Barton led by 11 points three times in the first half, but the Bobcats slowly battled back into contention after trailing 36-27 at intermission.
Junior guard Aaron Brown hit a free throw to start the second half for Barton, then Lees-McRae went on a 8-0 run to pull within 37-35 at 16:42. Battle canned a jumper and a 3-pointer in the run. The Bobcats tied the game at 47 and 50, thanks to plenty of missed Barton foul shots. Lees-McRae had a layup to potentially cut the lead to 63-60, but Manly swatted away the shot and Boston converted an acrobatic fadeaway on the other end to make it 65-58 with 46 seconds left in regulation. Jeremiah Henry and Lamot each went 2-for-2 from the line to pull within 65-62 at 19 seconds and then Barton committed a turnover. Lees-McRae worked the ball around and found Sepokas at the left top of the key, where he swished the tying 3-pointer.
Boston's off-balanced runner from the corner of the free-throw line bounced off the rim to end regulation.
Tillman swished a jumper to start OT for the Bobcats, but Haley hit 1-of-2 foul shots, then Shelton scooped up a loose ball and hit a short jumper in traffic for a 68-67 edge at 3:26. Sophomore guard Zach Faircloth banked in 15-footer for a 70-67 lead and Haley added a foul shot for a 71-67 cushion at :43. Sepokas came through again in the clutch for the Bobcats, draining a trey at :29 to make it 71-70. Boston netted one foul shot for a 72-70 lead, then LMC had a chance to tie it with 17 seconds showing, but Manley again soared high for a key rejection and Boston snared the rebound.
Boston and Joseph Velez each hit 1-of-2 from the line in the final 15 seconds around one charity shot from Sepokas. Trailing 74-71 with five seconds left, LMC raced down the court and Lamot fired up a 3-pointer from the top of the key that bounced off the rim, leaving Barton with the narrow victory.
