Box Score by Benny Benton
WILSON, N.C. – The Barton College men's basketball team stormed back from a 13-point first-half deficit with an 11-0 run to close out the period, then outscored Shaw University 40-27 in the second half to claim a 70-59 non-conference victory on the second day of the Barton 45-Second Classic Saturday afternoon in Wilson Gymnasium.
Senior guard Favian Beard led balanced scoring for Barton (1-1) with 13 points. Sophomore Chris Flemmings added 12 points and six rebounds, junior Evan Shelton added 12 points and eight boards, and junior Daniel McClendon chipped in 11 points. Junior Ryan Canoy pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds for the Bulldogs.
Shaw, also 1-1 on the young season, was paced by 18 points from senior Curtis Hines. Senior Andre Paulk added 14 points, with junior Aquil Younger adding 11. Junior Koron Reed narrowly missed a double-double, scoring 10 points and pulling down a team-high nine boards.
After Barton scored the first two points of the game, the Bears scored the next 12 to quickly establish a double-digit lead less than five minutes into play. A pair of 3-pointers, one by Albert Smith and another by Hines, capped the run. At the same time, the Bulldogs missed four straight shots and turned the ball over twice.
Barton trimmed that advantage down to two, only to watch Shaw push the lead right back into double-digits, reaching a peak of 13 points at 32-19 after the second of two Hines free throws with 2:52 to go in the period. Hines had 10 points in the first half and Reed added eight.
However, the Bears would not score again in the half, turning the ball over three times and missing their last two field goals and a pair of free throws. Beard scored four points and collected a steal during Barton's 11-0 run, which was capped by a 3-pointer from freshman Jordan Sharpe, bringing the Bulldogs within two at 32-30 at intermission.
Shaw led by as many as five points on two separate occasions early in the second half before Barton took its first lead of the game since 2-0 on a Flemmings layup with 14:09 to play.
With the score tied at 42-all, Barton went on a 7-0 run, led by junior Khari Faison, who scored all five of his points during the spurt, two on a dunk that brought the Dog House to life.
The Bulldogs' lead surpassed double-digits at 59-48 on a dunk by Evans with 5:26 to go, and reached a high of 14 points on a layup by Flemmings with 2:24 to play.
Despite a significant size disadvantage inside, Barton out-rebounded the Bears 41 to 31, with 18 of those boards coming on the offensive glass. The Bulldogs also helped themselves by forcing 18 Shaw turnovers, and by shooting 82 percent from the free throw line (14 of 17) in the second half.
Barton's win made it a clean sweep for Conference Carolinas on day two of the 45-Second Classic. In the day's first game, Mount Olive College's Dontrell Bright scored 19 points to lead the Trojans past Elizabeth City State University, 73-67.
The Bulldogs will return to action on Friday, Nov. 15, in Jefferson City, Tenn., against the host team in the Carson-Newman Classic.
