ROCK HILL, S.C. – The #7 Emory & Henry University Men's Basketball Team made a valiant comeback attempt against #2 Lenoir-Rhyne University Wednesday evening in the Quarterfinal Round of the South Atlantic Conference Tournament, but came up just short. The Bears held off a late surge from the Wasps for the 88-80 win.
The Basics
FINAL SCORE – #2 Lenoir-Rhyne 88, #7 Emory & Henry 80
LOCATION – Rock Hill, South Carolina
VENUE – Rock Hill Sports and Events Center
RECORDS – Emory & Henry (16-13, 11-11 SAC); Lenoir-Rhyne (24-7, 17-5 SAC)
How It Happened
- The teams traded baskets to begin the game and a layup from junior forward Jalen Smith (San Antonio, Texas) gave Emory & Henry the slight 10-8 advantage at the first media timeout. The Bears scored the next five points, but a three-point basket from freshman forward Donnie Morris (Tampa, Fla.) tied things up at 13-13 with just under 14 minutes left in the opening half. LR managed to create some separation through the middle of the frame to push ahead 28-21 at the 7:38 mark. E&H fought back and managed to close the gap to just one at 30-29 thanks to a jumper from long distance by sophomore guard Korbin Dixon (Milton, Ontario, CANADA). The Wasps tied the contest once more at 36-36 with 56 seconds remaining in the half, but LR's Conrad Luczynski would convert an old-fashioned three-point play to give the Bears a 39-36 lead heading into halftime.
- Lenoir-Rhyne began the second half on the front foot, utilizing a 14-5 run over the opening four minutes to give themselves a 12-point margin at 53-41. The Wasps would score eight of the next nine points and sliced the deficit to five at 54-49 with 14:40 showing on the game clock. Another run from LR, this of an 11-3 variety, over the following four and a half minutes saw their lead grow back to double digits at 65-52. Emory & Henry would not go quietly as the Wasps slowly chipped away at the margin and a jumper from junior guard Jaden Andrew (St. John's, ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA) brought them back within just a point at 71-70 with four minutes left to play. The Bears pushed their lead back out to six at 82-76, but Smith drained a clutch three to make it 82-79 with just over a minute left. That was as close as the Wasps would get however, as they went cold from the field and LR took advantage of their numerous attempts at the free throw line to escape with the 88-80 victory.
Emory & Henry Individual Leaders
- Crawford led the way for the Wasps with a team-high 21 points and two assists while Dixon added 16 points, four assists, two steals and a pair of rebounds.
- Andrew finished with 14 points, six boards, four assists and a blocked shot. Freshman guard Melchior Hughes (Geneva, SWITZERLAND) went for 12 points, four rebounds, two steals and an assist while Smith and Morris each had six points, two rebounds and a pair of helpers.
Lenoir-Rhyne Individual Leaders
- Luczynski recorded a game-high 24 points, six rebounds, three assists, three blocks and a steal while Akili Evans collected 19 points, five rebounds, four steals and a trio of assists.
- Tyler Burraston posted 14 points and one rebound while Blessin Kimble registered 11 points, six rebounds and a pair of helpers off of the bench.
A Deeper Look
- Emory & Henry shot 44.6% (29-for-65) overall and 44.1% (15-34) from beyond the three-point arc. The 15 made threes were a season high for the Wasps, and the most made in a game for the program since a win over the University of Puerto Rico-Cayey on November 28, 2022. E&H converted just 58.3% (7-for-12) of their attempts at the charity stripe.
- Lenoir-Rhyne was 27-for-45 (60.0%) from the floor and 6-for-11 (54.5%) from deep. The Bears took advantage of a generous whistle as they made constant trips to the free throw line, knocking down 28 of their staggering 45 attempts (62.2%).
- LR held a big 35-25 advantage on the boards and converted those second chances into 17 points, compared to 14 for the Wasps.
- The Bears forced the ball inside, outscoring E&H by a 38-28 margin in the painted area.
- Emory & Henry won the turnover battle as they forced 13 LR turnovers that they converted into 19 points. Lenoir-Rhyne forced just 10 turnovers for 16 points.
- The Bears got out in transition on more occasions than the Wasps as they put up 11 fastbreak points to E&H's five.
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