Box Score by Benny Benton
WILSON, N.C. – The Barton College men's basketball team rallied from an 11-point second-half deficit to defeat visiting Erskine College, 80-72, and claim its fourth straight victory on Wednesday at Wilson Gymnasium.
The win was the eighth in BC's last nine games, and kept the regionally-ranked No. 7 Bulldogs (11-4, 6-1) in a three-way tie for first place at the top of the Conference Carolinas standings.
Barton fell behind by double-digits late in the first half and trailed 44-35 at intermission. The Flying Fleet (6-7, 3-4) maintained that advantage early in the final period, and still held a nine-point cushion at 48-39 with 16:25 to play.
However, BC junior Daniel Westbrook scored seven points and pulled down four rebounds over the game's next four minutes, leading the Royal Blue and White on an 11-1 run to regain the lead at 50-49 with 12:28 remaining. Although Erskine would remain close, it would never again lead.
Barton held a three-point cushion at 59-56 when it began to pull away. BC turned a Dominique Byrd block and rebound into a fast break opportunity, with Ryan Canoy finishing in the play on a reverse layup off a Danny Shand assist. Canoy had an offensive put-back on the Bulldogs' next possession, and Westbrook scored on a layup off a Jake Veasley assist to put BC up double-digits for the first time in the game, 66-56, with 7:42 left.
From there, Erskine got no closer than eight points the rest of the way.
Byrd and Veasley paced Barton offensively with 16 points each, and Byrd also collected nine rebounds. Westbrook finished the night with 14 points and eight boards, and Shand matched a season-high with nine assists while also scoring 13 points. Canoy contributed nine points and nine rebounds, with eight of those boards coming in the second-half rally.
Barton has been tied or trailing at halftime in each of its last four games, but has used a strong second-half defense to slow down the opposition. In Wednesday's contest, Erskine shot 47 percent in the first half (14 of 30), but managed just 28 percent (8 of 29) in the final period.
The Bulldogs, meanwhile, improved upon a 32 percent shooting effort in the opening frame (12 of 37) by making 48 percent of their attempts in the second half (15 of 31).
Barton turned the ball over just nine times in the game, marking its third straight game with single-digit turnovers. It's the first time that has happened in at least six years.
Erskine also took care of the ball, making just 10 miscues, but could not take advantage due to its cold-shooting second half.
The league's leading scorer, Joby Glymph, produced 21 points – one below his season average – in leading the Fleet. Brannon Dark added 16 points and eight rebounds, and Addison Holmes added 12 points while making every shot he took from the field and free throw line.
Thomas Nolan Jr. scored 11 points in the game's first 5:07 to lead Erskine to an early advantage, but went 0-of-8 the rest of the night. He did distribute a team-high five assists, however.
Barton, making its first home appearance in a month, improved to 7-0 this season in the Dog House. The Bulldogs will hit the road again for a 4 p.m. game at Belmont Abbey College on Saturday before returning the friendly confines for a home matchup next Tuesday against league co-leader Lees-McRae College.
