by Cory Guinn
WILSON, N.C. – The Barton College women's and men's basketball teams play host to the rival Trojans of University of Mount Olive on Tuesday, February 24 at 5:30 and 7:30 p.m. in Wilson Gymnasium.
Barton sports information will provide live stats and video for both contests. Women's links: live stats l video Men's links: live stats l video
Barton basketball fans can follow the Bulldogs all season on www.BartonBulldogs.com and via social media including Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Lady Bulldogs vs Mount Olive
Following three consecutive losses, including an 86-72 loss to nationally-ranked No. 4 Limestone College on Saturday night, the Lady Bulldogs (13-15, 12-9) host Mount Olive in the regular season finale for both teams.
Barton currently sits in sixth place in the league standings behind Emmanuel (who is not eligible for postseason play), while Mount Olive ranks seventh in the league standings as the conference tournament draws near.
The Trojans are 12-15 overall with a 10-11 mark in league play, having won its last two contests including a 71-46 victory over Converse College on Saturday at Kornegay Arena.
On February 4, senior Brianna Thomas recorded her fourth double-double of the season with 21 points on 9-of-15 shooting from the floor, including 3-for-5 from three-point range, with 10 rebounds and three blocks as the Barton College women's basketball team shot 45 percent from three-point range (9-for-20) en route to a 77-69 victory over in-state rival University of Mount Olive on the road.
A second-half 18-point lead would be Barton's largest of the game as Mount Olive cut the deficit to single digits with just over nine minutes on the clock. The Trojans would get as close a four-point margin multiple times in the final minute but the Lady Bulldogs hit 5-of-7 free throw attempts in the closing seconds to seal the win.
Barton shot 47.4 percent from the floor in addition to its hot night from long range. The Lady Bulldogs limited the Mount Olive offense to 36.4 percent shooting from the floor and forcing the Trojans into 17 turnovers.
Senior Kaila Lea recorded 14 points of her own, while freshman Tatyana Jackson totaled 14 points on 5-for-8 shooting with six rebounds and four assists. Sophomore Tiffany Webster rounded out the double-digit scorers for Barton with 11 points and five assists of her own in 31 minutes of action in the win over Mount Olive.
Thus far in the season, Mount Olive ranks seventh overall in the conference with 63.4 points per game on the offensive end, led by sophomore center Arieal Johnson who averages 13 points and a league-leading 10.6 rebounds and 2.7 blocks in 25 games. Senior forward Ty Wallace follows with 12.9 points and 9.7 rebounds of her own while shooting 49.7 percent from the floor.
As a team, the Lady Bulldogs average 65.5 points per game, while ranking fifth in scoring defense allowing 64.7 points and ranking third in the conference with 9.7 steals per game.
Lea continues to pace Barton with 13.4 points per game and Thomas averages 10 points per game while leading the team with 7.4 rebounds on the court.
Webster is the team's second-leading scorer with 11.1 points and a team-high 2.7 assists per game, while fellow sophomore Shatisha Dukes has risen her season averages to 9.4 points and 6.1 rebounds per game.
Bulldogs vs Mount Olive (Senior Night)
The Barton men's basketball team (13-14, 9-10) has struggled recently, losing four of its last five games including an 87-75 loss to Limestone College over the weekend in Wilson.
The Bulldogs now face nationally-ranked No. 13 Mount Olive (25-2, 18-1) looking to split the regular season series after the Trojans earned an 89-73 victory on Feb. 4 in Mount Olive. The Trojans have won their last 14 contests, including a 59-56 comeback victory over Lees-McRae last week at home.
In the first meeting of the regular season, the league-leading Trojans shot 56.4 percent from the field after a slow start while holding the Bulldogs to just 39.7 percent. Mount Olive protected its lead by making 22 of 26 attempts from the free throw line (84.6 percent) on the night.
Barton was led by 21 points from freshman Danny Shand, who also had eight rebounds and five assists. Dominique Byrd contributed a double-double of 13 points and 10 boards in the loss.
Barton's offense ranks third among Conference Carolinas schools, scoring 81.7 points per game and pulling down a league-high 41.2 rebounds per game. In contrast, the Trojans average 79.4 points on 49.1 percent shooting from the floor while allowing 66.1 points per contest on the defensive end.
The Bulldog defense will be tasked with stopping a Mount Olive offense which possess five players who score in double figures, led by junior guard Dontrell Brite with 14.4 points and a league-leading 5.8 assists per game.
Senior Jordan McCain follows close behind with 13.2 points on 54.6 percent shooting from the floor and 44.3 percent shooting from three-point range, while junior Jaquan Blount chips in 11.3 points of his own. Forward Dominique Reed (10.9 points, 57.8 field goal percentage) and guard Kendall Hargrove (10.1 points and 8.3 rebounds) round out the double-digit scorers for Mount Olive.
Barton's top scorers are Shand (16.1 points per game, 4.2 assists, 1.3 steals) and junior guard Jake Veasley (15 points, 4.1 rebounds, 38.7 three-point percentage), who place seventh and eighth respectively in the individual points per game rankings within the conference.
Byrd has increased his season averages to 9.1 points and a team-high 6.4 rebounds per game, while Canoy chips in 7.9 points on 46.9 percent shooting from the floor and 4.8 rebounds of his own.
