Box Score by Benny Benton
BRISTOL, Tenn. – Nationally-ranked King University outscored Barton College 25-2 over the final three minutes of the first half and first four minutes of the second half, turning a close game into an eventual 98-63 rout in the Conference Carolinas men's basketball opener for both teams on Tuesday.
After falling behind 6-0, Barton (3-3, 0-1) rallied to take a brief lead that reached three points at 15-12 on a Ryan Canoy jumper with exactly 11 minutes left in the first half.
The Bulldogs trailed by just four at 33-29 following two Daniel Westbrook free throws with 2:42 remaining in the period, but King (5-0, 1-0) scored eight of the final 10 points of the half to take a 41-31 advantage into intermission.
The Tornado stormed out of the gate to start the second period, scoring the first 17 points to put the game out of reach. Barton turned the ball over on five straight possessions (six total) and also missed a pair of shots during the span.
The spurt was reminiscent of the 2014 Conference Carolinas Tournament semifinals, where King jumped out to a 15-0 lead to start the game on its way to a 20-point victory.
King, ranked No. 9 in this week's D2SIDA national poll and No. 15 in the NABC poll, forced 21 turnovers in the contest while committing just 10. The Tornado drained 14 3-pointers in the game and went 14-of-15 from the free throw line, including 11-of-11 in a 57-point second half.
C.J. Good and Dontae Campbell each scored 15 points for King, with Hunter LeVeau contributing 14 and Drew Standifer chipping in 10.
Barton, which was held to 35.5 percent shooting in the game, was paced by junior transfer Tyler Thayer, who scored 12 points, all on 3-pointers. Westbrook added 11 points and seven rebounds, and R.J. Claypool collected a game-high nine rebounds to go with six points.
The Bulldogs, which faced the top two teams in the Southeast Region – King and UNC Pembroke – in a span of five days, will take a holiday break before returning to action at home on Wednesday, Dec. 2, at 7 p.m. against Fayetteville State University.
