WILSON, N.C. – The Barton men's basketball team (6-10, 3-3) rallied late but came up just short to Emmanuel (14-4, 6-1), 78-74, Saturday afternoon in a Conference Carolinas game at Wilson Gymnasium.
The Lions, winners of five straight contests, were led by NCAA Division II All-American KJ Jones, II (Atlanta, Ga.) with a game-high 26 points while Tavarus Webb (Hartwell, Ga.) added 21 points as Emmanuel was able to hold on in the end.
Barton senior guard
Reese McDonald (Raleigh, N.C.) finished with a team-high 21 points as the Bulldogs used a 16-5 run late in the contest to cut the lead to two points – 76-74 with 10 seconds left – but Jones hit a pair of free throws to ice the win for the Lions.
Emmanuel, who sits at the top of the league's Southwest Division, hit 34-of-40 free throws (85 percent) to stay ahead of Barton for the majority of the contest.
Barton senior guards
Jett Fortuny (Cary, N.C.) and
Donaven Hairston (Atlanta, Ga.) added 17 and 14 points, respectively, in the losing effort.
Barton hits the road to take on UNC Pembroke in a Conference Carolinas contest Wednesday at 7:00 p.m., in Pembroke, N.C., while Emmanuel hosts Erskine Tuesday at 7:00 p.m.
