Box Score by Kevin Buczek
GAFFNEY, S.C.-Senior guard Brian McNair nailed a last-second 3-pointer after receiving an outlet pass by freshman Kendall Patterson to lift visiting Barton College to a thrilling 88-85 Conference Carolinas men's basketball victory over streaking Limestone College on Monday Night in the Timken Center.
The Bulldogs moved a half-game ahead of idle King University for sole possession of first place in the league standings with just two games left in the regular season. Barton (15-9 overall, 11-3 conf.) extended its current win streak to a season-best five games while ending a six-game win streak for the Saints. Limestone's (16-7, 8-5) last two losses have both been against Barton.
McNair finished with 13 points. His game-winning shot from just above the left corner of the 3-point arc was the Bulldogs 13th trifecta of the game.
Limestone – one of the best 3-point shooting teams in the country that ranked eighth in NCAA Division II in made three-pointers per game – made 12 of 26 (46.2%) tries from the perimeter but Barton outgunned the Saints by making 13 of 21 attempts for a staggering 61.9%.
Sophomore Chris Flemmings scored a game-high 25 points including six 3-pointers.
Barton's frontcourt duo of junior Khari Faison and senior Evan Shelton also had big nights for the Bulldogs. Faison matched McNair with 13 points while Shelton came off the bench and led BC's reserves with nine points. Shelton and Faison led the Bulldogs on the backboards with seven and five rebounds, respectively, as Barton held a 31-28 rebounding advantage.
Patterson's assist on McNair's buzzer beater was his fifth of the contest, moving him into a tie with McNair for team-high helper honors.
Barton scored the contests first four points on a layup by McNair and a bank shot by junior Daniel McClendon but Limestone rushed ahead 12-4 with the next dozen points including treys by juniors Josh Odem and Asaad Woods.
The Saints stayed in front for nine minutes until consecutive 3-pointers by freshman Jordan Sharpe gave BC a brief lead at 23-21. The two teams traded baskets for the final nine minutes of first period. Foster put the hosts up 34-32 with his third trifecta from well beyond NBA range but a Shelton tip-in quickly retied the scoreboard. The Bulldogs pulled out to a late 42-38 edge on a couple 3-pointers by Flemmings sandwiched between another layup by Shelton but the Saints tied the score for a fifth time on a pair of fast break layups by freshman Shaq Dance and Odem. McNair had the last good look of the half and he drained a 15-footer on the right wing to provide Barton with a narrow 44-42 halftime advantage.
Barton made seven of its first 10 three-point attempts and shot 56.7% (17 of 30) in the first half. The Bulldogs also held a 16-12 rebounding edge with Shelton pulling down five before the intermission.
Flemmings and McNair paced a deep Barton squad into the locker room 10 and eight points, respectively. The Bulldogs had 10 players with points in the scorebook by halftime.
Odem and Foster each had nine points at the midway break and they both got hotter in the second half. Odem finished with a team-high 22 points and Foster followed with 21 points on seven made 3-pointers.
Foster, who leads NCAA Division II in made treys per contest, rallied the Saints to a six-point lead, 64-58, at the 13:52 mark but a Faison dunk on BC's next trip down the court let Limestone know the Bulldogs were not backing down. The two teams kept battling as neither squad gained more than a two possession advantage over the final 10 minutes.
Odem connected on a 3-pointer with 4:49 to go to give LC its last lead at 81-79. McNair swished a pair of free throws after the final media timeout to knot the score. Barton then regained the lead – the 14th lead change of the seesaw affair – on a Faison layup off an entry pass by Patterson. The Saints missed their next two shots before Flemmings drove the right baseline for a slam that doubled up the Bulldogs edge to 85-81. BC took the same four-point cushion into the final minute but Limestone answered one more time.
A quick layup by senior Jamal McNeill off an inbounds pass after a 30-second timeout cut the deficit in half. A Barton turnover then led to a transition layup by Dance to knot the score up at 85-85 with 18.5 remaining in regulation.
The Bulldogs then ran down the main clock with the shot clock turned off. With less than 10 seconds remaining, Patterson dribbled down the right wing, cut down the baseline and then found McNair with a nice pass from under the basket, which the senior converted as the final horn sounded.
Barton shot 52.4% (33 of 63) from the floor and has shot at least 45% in each game of its current five-game win streak. The Bulldogs also moved to 13-0 when scoring at least 75 points.
McClendon, Patterson and Sharpe all chipped in six points. BC's bench outscored LC's reserves 28-4.
The Bulldogs also committed just 10 fouls. Barton was 13 of 18 (72.2%) from the free throw line while the Saints made all seven of their freebees.
Dance just missed a double-double for Limestone with 18 points and nine rebounds. Woods tallied 14 points and Odem had a game-high six assists.
Barton will play its third game in five days when the Bulldogs visit Conference Carolinas foe Pfeiffer University on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m.
