Box Score by Benny Benton
WILSON, N.C. – Barton College seniors R.J. Claypool and Daniel Westbrook led the Bulldogs in a rally from 10 points down in the final five minutes to claim a 92-87 victory over King University Wednesday night in Wilson Gymnasium.
Westbrook, a hometown senior, scored eight of his 21 points during the comeback, and Claypool, a senior from Woodbury, Minn., added six of his 21 points during the stretch run. Sophomore Matt Woods accounted for the other five BC points as the Bulldogs (10-4, 5-1) closed the contest on a 19-4 spurt to rally from a 10-point deficit.
The win completed Barton's first regular-season sweep of the Tornado since King joined Conference Carolinas in 2011, and moved the Bulldogs into sole possession of second place in the league.
King, which received 20 points and eight rebounds each from seniors Hunter LeVeau and Derick Pope, fell to 5-3 in the conference and 8-8 overall.
After playing a one-possession game for much of the first half, Barton used a three-point play by Jeff Gordon, a layup by Westbrook and a 3-pointer by Woods to close the period on an 8-2 run and take a 50-43 advantage into intermission.
Barton shot 51 percent from the field in the period and was even better from 3-point range, making 7 of 13 from long range (54 percent). The Bulldogs also outrebounded the Tornado in the period, 22-16, and were able to handle King's pressure defense, committing just five turnovers.
A layup by Claypool marked the first points of the second half, increasing BC's lead to nine, and Barton eventually took the biggest lead of the game for either team, 11 points, at 60-49 on a 3-pointer by Claypool with 15:37 remaining.
Unable to force Barton, the league leader in fewest turnovers, into mistakes with its preferred pressure defense, King switched to a zone. The move proved to be a good one for the Tornado, as the Bulldogs missed their next five shots and committed four turnovers.
King, ranked third nationally in 3-pointers made per game, had been ice cold from beyond the arc to that point, making just 4 of 18. However, the string of BC misses led to opportunities for King on offense, and the Tornado drained six 3-pointers in a row and seven of its next eight over the next six and a half minutes.
The result was a 26-6 run that turned Barton's 11-point lead into a nine-point advantage for the Tornado, 75-66, with nine minutes remaining.
The Bulldogs closed to within four on a layup by Isaiah Buck-Lowman with 6:06 to go, but a jumper by Pope and consecutive baskets by Noble Fahnbulleh pushed King's lead to double-digits at 83-73 with 4:41 remaining.
Despite a 3-pointer by Woods, Barton still trailed by nine at the final media time out with four minutes to play, but Westbrook got the BC rally started with a 3-pointer on the next possession, and after a LeVeau miss for King, added two free throws to trim the deficit to four, 85-81.
With 1:50 left, Westbrook produced a block and a defensive rebound before getting the ball to Claypool, who was fouled and made both attempts. King made its only basket in its last eight attempts from the field – a layup by Malcolm St. Louis – with 1:04 left to take an 87-83 advantage, but Westbrook drained a key 3-pointer to pull the deficit back to just one with 48 seconds to go.
Jordan Floyd missed a 3-pointer for the Tornado with 26 seconds to play, and Claypool was fouled while pulling down the rebound. His two free throws with 25 seconds remaining put Barton back into the lead, 88-87, and his steal seven seconds later gave BC possession and the lead. Claypool's fast-break layup attempt was blocked by Floyd, but Woods was there for the offensive putback, giving Barton a 90-87 advantage with seven seconds left.
Floyd missed another 3-point attempt with five seconds left and Claypool again came down with the rebound before being fouled. His two free throws with three seconds to go put the game away for the Bulldogs.
In addition to their game-high scoring totals, Westbrook added nine rebounds and Claypool chipped in eight. Westbrook also contributed three blocks and Claypool handed out five assists.
Freshman Michael Boykin produced 18 points, 16 of those in the first half, and five assists. Woods added 11 points and Buck-Lowman tossed in 10.
Barton finished the night with just 10 turnovers but lost the rebounding battle 45-38 after King enjoyed a 29-16 edge on the glass in the final period.
The Bulldogs made more 3-pointers on the night than King, one of the national leaders in the category, and did so while shooting 65 percent from beyond the arc (13 of 20). The Tornado managed just 11 of 34 (32 percent).
The contest was the third in a six-game homestand for Barton. The next game on the schedule is Saturday against Erskine, which handed BC its only league loss of the season so far, 96-78, in its league opener way back on November 22. Since then, the Bulldogs have rolled off five straight conference wins.
