HARTSVILLE, S.C. -- Junior guard Oskars Ernsteins hit two free
throws with two seconds on the clock to lift the Anderson men's
basketball team to a 79-77 win past Coker in Conference Carolinas
action Monday night at Timberlake-Lawton Gymnasium. With the score
tied at 77-77 and just seven seconds left on the clock, the
6-foot-4 guard grabbed teammate Brandon Young's miss and was fouled
as he launched a 3-point attempt. Ernsteins, an 83.3 percent
shooter from the free-throw line, misfired on his first attempt but
connected on the final two, giving the Trojans a 79-77 edge with
:02 left. Anderson sophomore Taylor Shugart was whistled for a foul
on the ensuing inbounds play, sending Coker sophomore Delonte Doles
to the free throw line for the one-and-one. The Cobras were a
perfect 19-of-19 from the charity stripe, including Doles' 4-for-4
effort on the night, but the 5-foot-9 guard missed the free throw
and Shugart collected the rebound and was fouled. Shugart misfired
on his two attempts with just 0.4 seconds remaining, but Coker was
unable to get off a shot before the buzzer sounded. With just one
day to prepare following Saturday's home win over St. Andrews, and
playing its third game in six days, Anderson (10-3, 4-3 Conference
Carolinas) claimed its second straight win and three of its last
five, while extending Coker's losing streak to five straight. The
Cobras fell to 5-9 overall and 2-5 in league play. "We needed a win
like this one," Anderson head coach Jason Taylor said. "This is a
very tough place to play." In a game that featured seven ties but
just two lead changes, neither team was able to build more than a
six-point advantage in the second half. Anderson methodically built
a 22-12 lead midway through the first half behind a balanced
offensive attack that saw guard Brandon Young open the game with a
3-pointer and give AU its 10-point lead, the largest of the game,
on his second trey at the 9:39 mark. Coker chipped away and
eventually knotted the score behind a 15-5 run and went on to gain
a 38-31 lead before the Trojans closed out the opening frame with a
7-0 run of their own that saw Young drain a long buzzer-beating
3-pointer to set the 38-38 halftime score. The Belmont, N.C.,
native finished with a game-high 22 points, while Kevis Cornwell
added 15 points and six rebounds. Trey Britton netted 10 points and
Shugart garnered a game-high seven rebounds on the night. Anderson
returns home Thursday as longtime rival Erskine invades the Abney
Center for the first of a two-game Conference Carolinas homestand.
Tip-off is slated for 7:30 versus the Flying Fleet. BoxScore