Box Score by Benny Benton
WILSON, N.C. – Barton College held the nation's No. 1 team in 3-pointers per game below its average on Tuesday night to give itself a chance, but the Bulldogs turned the ball over a season-high 22 times in suffering a 78-68 loss to visiting King University in Wilson Gymnasium.
The win helped King (17-5, 12-2) open up a two-game lead at the top of the Conference Carolinas standings, and dropped Barton (15-8, 10-5) from a second-place tie into third, a half-game behind idle Emmanuel College.
Barton had allowed 14 3-pointers and 21 turnovers to the Tornado in a 98-63 loss in Tennessee earlier this year. The Bulldogs improved slightly on the 3-point defense Tuesday, giving up 11 3-pointers while making 10 themselves.
However, they were even worse in the turnover department than the previous game against a King defense ranked in the top-10 nationally in turnover margin.
Barton had 14 miscues in the first-half alone, including seven during a seven-minute stretch of the first half that allowed King to open up a double-digit advantage for the first time. The Bulldogs would close to within four early in the second half, but turned the ball over twice before missing three straight shots, opening the door for the Tornado to move back in front by 12.
Junior transfer Tyler Thayer matched a season-high with five made 3-pointers in the game, accounting for all of his team-high 15 points for BC. Junior Daniel Westbrook added 14 points and grabbed a game-high nine rebounds, while senior Dominique Byrd contributed seven points and eight boards.
King was led by junior C.J. Good, who poured in six 3-pointers in scoring a game-high 22 points. Good also collected four of the Tornado's 11 steals in the contest. Junior Hunter LeVeau added 17 points and seven rebounds, and James Scales chipped in 10 points. Between them, the trio accounted for all 11 of King's 3-pointers, which was actually two below the team's season average per game.
Barton used consecutive 3-pointers by Matt Woods and Thayer to take its biggest lead of the night at 8-2 just four minutes into play. King eventually moved in front on a 3-pointer by LeVeau, but Woods matched it on the other end to leave the Bulldogs up two at 15-13 with 11 minutes left in the half.
However, Barton had seven turnovers and just three made baskets over the game's next seven minutes, allowing the Tornado to surge ahead 32-21 with 3:47 left before intermission.
The Bulldogs cut the deficit to five on a jumper by Jake Veasley 25 seconds before halftime, and climbed within two at 34-32 when Thayer opened the second period with a 3-pointer.
Barton was still within reach following another 3-pointer by Thayer that left BC trailing by four, 39-35, with 18:21 to go, but the Bulldogs committed back-to-back turnovers and then missed three shots in a row.
King quickly went on an 8-0 run, capped by a four-point play from LeVeau, who was fouled while draining a fast-break 3-pointer from the left corner. His free throw put the Tornado up 47-35 with 15:56 remaining, and King led by double-digits most of the rest of the game.
Barton did pull within six on two occasions, the final time at 51-45 following a Byrd dunk with 11:53 to go. However, the Bulldogs missed a contested layup on their next possession and King made one on a fast-break the other direction, putting the Tornado back up by eight. BC then suffered a shot-clock violation, and Good put a dagger in the Bulldogs with a 3-pointer that took the King lead back to 11 at 56-45 with 10:09 to play.
King would lead by as many as 14 points, and Barton would get no closer than eight the rest of the way.
In addition to winning the turnover battle, the Tornado also enjoyed a 40-34 edge in rebounding, including a 17-8 advantage on the offensive glass, a category in which Barton ranked seventh nationally coming into the game, right behind King.
Over the past three games, Barton has faced teams currently ranked first, fourth and fifth in the league standings. On Saturday, it concludes this grueling stretch of schedule by facing the team now in second after Barton's loss on Tuesday, Emmanuel. The Bulldogs must do so while making the longest road trip of the year, a 374-mile trek to Franklin Springs, Ga., to face a Lions team that is 15-5 overall, 10-4 in league play and 7-2 at home. Tipoff for the game is set for 2 p.m.
