Box Score
by Kevin Buczek
BELMONT, N.C.-Senior point guard Gerald Boston hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 3:48 left and then made four clutch free throws in the final 10 seconds to lead 19th NABC/Division II ranked Barton College to a 100-96 Conference Carolinas men's basketball victory over Belmont Abbey College on Wednesday night in the Wheeler Center.
Barton (11-2 Overall, 6-1 Conf.) had five double digit scorers and made a season-most 13 three-pointers en route to its fourth consecutive victory. The Bulldogs shot 55% from the field including 59% from behind the arc to deny Belmont Abbey (10-5, 3-4) a third straight win.
Boston scored a team-high 25 points that featured 9-of-10 free throw precision in the second half.
Eight different Bulldogs made a trey with freshman Tristan Thomas pacing the sharp shooters with three bombs. Thomas and junior guard Brian McNair each finished with 13 points. Reigning Conference Carolinas Player of the Week Jon Hart supplied 11 points and freshman Chris Flemmings totaled 10.
Senior guard Aaron Brown added eight points and seniors Jarrett Jernigan and Keith Manley came off the bench for six points apiece as Barton reached the century mark for a second time this season. Brown dished out four assists and Jernigan made three steals.
Tyshawn Good – ranked fourth in the nation in scoring – poured in a game-high 39 points and Darryl Durham posted a dominate double-double of 20 points and 16 rebounds to keep the Abbey in striking distance.
Manley's first basket in his first game back after missing six games due to injury at the 8:48 mark of the first half gave Barton its largest lead of the night at 30-18. The Crusaders outscored the Bulldogs, 24-16, for the rest of the period to close the halftime score to 46-42. Good scored 14 of the Abbey's 24 points during the rally.
Ten of the showdowns 11 ties and eight of the contest nine lead changes occurred in a back-and-forth second half.
Belmont Abbey grabbed its largest lead at 64-58 with 12:39 to go but both teams stayed within a half dozen points of each other throughout the final frame. A trifecta by Good at the 4:50 mark put the Crusaders ahead by five, 85-80, before Boston scored eight consecutive points to leapfrog Barton in front. Boston sandwiched a pair of made free throws between a pair of three-pointers in his mini-run. The Abbey pulled to within two points on six different occasions in the final two minutes but the Bulldogs made 8-of-10 free throws in the final 30 seconds to remain on top.
Barton's bench tripled up Belmont Abbey's reserves, 33-11, with Thomas topping the list with a career-high 13 points. The Crusaders held a 36-28 rebounding edge but committed more turnovers, 23-19.
Barton next entertains league rival Pfeiffer University on Monday, Jan. 21 at 7:30 p.m.
