by Cory Guinn
WILSON, N.C. – The Barton College men's and women's basketball teams return to Wilson Gymnasium for a weekend conference matchup with Southern Wesleyan University on Saturday, February 7 at 5:30 and 7:30 p.m. The Bulldogs will play host to parents, students and faculty of surrounding area schools for Wilson County Schools Night.
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 Southern Wesleyan
After a 77-69 road win over the University of Mount Olive on Wednesday, the Lady Bulldogs (10-12, 9-6) return home to finish the regular season series with Southern Wesleyan. Barton ranks sixth in the league standings and Southern Wesleyan ranks ninth.
The Warriors are 6-13 overall with four of their wins coming in league play. Southern Wesleyan is currently on an eight-game losing streak with their most recent loss coming against North Greenville University earlier this week.
Barton secured a 75-49 victory over Southern Wesleyan on January 20 in Central, S.C. shooting 50 percent from the floor in a contest in which it never trailed.
Barton's defense held strong, clinching the 26-point road victory over the Warriors, as the Lady Bulldog offense totaled 43 rebounds in comparison to 39 by Southern Wesleyan while scoring 48 of its points in the paint. Barton also dished out 21 assists on 31 made field goals in the game.
Senior forward Brianna Thomas led the Lady Bulldogs, tying her career-high with 25 points on 12-of-19 shooting from the floor with 12 rebounds in 39 minutes of action.
Sophomore Shatisha Dukes was the team's second-leading scorer with 16 points on 7-of-13 shooting, while fellow sophomore Tiffany Webster provided a spark off of the bench with 11 points, seven rebounds and a game-high seven assists against the Warriors.
Southern Wesleyan averages 71.4 points allowed on defense while scoring 62.2 points per game on the offensive end, led by senior guard Bri Seda with 11.5 points per game and sophomore forward Christina Perkins with 11.3 points per game, 8.3 rebounds and 3.2 steals.
As a team, the Lady Bulldogs average 64.9 points per game, while ranking fourth in scoring defense allowing 63.6 points and ranking third in the conference with 10.4 steals per game.
Senior guard Kaila Lea continues to pace Barton with 12.1 points per game and Thomas averages 10.5 points per game while leading the team with 7 rebounds.
Webster is the team's third double-digit scorer with 10.4 points and a team-high 2.8 assists per game, and Dukes has risen her game of late, averaging 8.2 points and 5.6 rebounds per game.
Bulldogs vs Southern Wesleyan
The Barton men's basketball team (12-10, 8-6) has lost its last three games, including an 89-73 defeat at the hands of nationally-ranked No. 14 University of Mount Olive on Wednesday.
The Bulldogs face Southern Wesleyan (4-17, 4-10) looking to secure a regular season sweep after defeating the Warriors 109-96 on Jan. 20 on their home floor.
Junior Dominique Byrd recorded 18 points and six rebounds in the second half to lead the Bulldogs on the comeback trail, and finished the night with a career-high 23 points and nine boards.
Fellow junior Jake Veasley led BC with 24 points on 7-of-8 shooting from the floor and 9-of-10 shooting from the line. Senior forward Khari Faison added a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds. Sophomore guard Kendall Patterson chipped in 12 points, most of them on a trio of 3-pointers, and Daniel Westbrook contributed 13 points on 6-of-8 shooting in the victory.
Barton's offense continues to sit atop Conference Carolinas, scoring 85.2 points per game and pulling down 42.3 rebounds per game. In contrast, the Warriors average 72.5 points on 45.4 percent shooting from the floor while ranking last in the league in scoring defense, allowing 85 points per contest.
The Bulldog defense will be tasked with stopping the league's top scorer in senior guard Cameron Solomon who averages 20.5 points per game on 46.8 percent shooting from the floor.
Senior guard Buster Walker averages 13.2 points of his own on 55.6 percent shooting from the field and 40 percent from three-point range, while junior guard Kenny Holmes averages 12.9 points and ranks second in the conference with 4.7 assists per game.
Barton's top scorers are freshman guard Danny Shand (17.1 points per game, 4.5 assists, 1.4 steals) and Veasley (15.6 points per game, 4.3 rebounds, 39.3 three-point percentage), who place fourth and eighth respectively in the individual points per game rankings within the conference.
Byrd has increased his season averages to 10 points and a team-high 6.7 rebounds per game, while senior Ryan Canoy chips in 8.7 points on 49.1 percent shooting from the floor and 5.2 rebounds of his own.
