Box Score by Cory Guinn
WILSON, N.C. – The Barton College men's basketball team avenged an early season loss to Fayetteville State University with an 81-79 victory over the Broncos on Wednesday night in Wilson Gymnasium.
Barton (4-3) made six three-pointers in the second half after an 0-for-6 performance in the opening 20 minutes and forced 10 second half turnovers to earn the win. The Broncos (4-4) shot 44.8 percent as a team and held Barton to a 41.9 percent mark but the Bulldogs made 23 free throws, including 16 in the second half of play.
Sophomore Danny Shand led all scorers with 17 points on 5-of-9 shooting from the floor and 7-of-10 from the free throw line to go along with a team-high seven assists and three steals. Junior Daniel Westbrook matched his season-high with 15 points and three blocks, while fellow junior R.J. Claypool finished with 11 points and six rebounds.
Senior Dominique Byrd totaled nine points and seven rebounds in 22 minutes off of the bench as junior Tyler Thayer was 3-for-6 from deep to finish with nine points in his first start of the season. Redshirt freshman Dorian Johnson chipped in eight points and seven rebounds of his own in 18 minutes of action.
Fayetteville State's Joshua Dawson recorded the game's only double with 13 points and 12 assists in 35 minutes of play. Michael Tyson also totaled 13 points as five Broncos scored in double figures.
BC scored the first six points of the game, using layups from Claypool and Shand and Westbrook dunk to build the early lead. Barton's lead grew to as large as 17-10 on another Shand layup with 14:22 to play in the half before Fayetteville State tied the game at 17-17 on a Dawson free throw.
Dawson's second made free throw gave FSU a brief one-point lead until back-to-back free throws from Byrd put Barton back ahead. Following a tie at 21-21, the Broncos used an 8-1 lead to gain a seven-point advantage with just over seven minutes remaining in the opening half. Barton overcame the deficit and evened the score at 37-37 on a jumper from Claypool as the two teams carried the tie into the halftime break.
Barton and Fayetteville traded baskets early in the second half as FSU was able to jump out to a five-point lead following back-to-back layups from Jyonte Raynor and Dawson. BC once again overcame the deficit and took a 60-59 lead following a three-pointer from Thayer with 9:03 left in regulation.
The Bulldog lead grew to as large an edge as 11 points with just under five minutes to play in the game. FSU was able to climb to within one point of the Barton lead but a Westbrook three-pointer and two free throws from senior Ryan Canoy pushed the Barton lead to 78-71 with one minute remaining. BC held its lead and secured the victory with three late free throws to keep the game out of reach.
Barton will play its second conference contest of the season when it hosts Southern Wesleyan University on Saturday, Dec. 5 at 4 p.m. in Wilson Gymnasium.
