ANDERSON, S.C. -- Using an late first-half offensive surge that
carried over into the second half, the Anderson men's basketball
team rolled to its 20th win of the season, as the Trojans defeated
Lees-McRae, 92-71, in Conference Carolinas action Wednesday night
at the Abney Athletic Center. Anderson (20-6, 13-6 Conference
Carolinas) has won six in row and seven of its last eight as the
Trojans, who were ranked seventh in the latest NCAA Southeast
Region Poll, continued to add to their school-record win total.
Lees-McRae (3-23, 2-17 CC) suffered its sixth consecutive setback,
with the Bobcats dropping 12 of their last 13 contests. The first
half featured three ties and two lead changes as both teams traded
baskets through the opening 14 minutes of action with neither squad
able to gain more than a five-point advantage. Guard Oskars
Ernsteins' 3-pointer from deep in the left corner with 7:08 left in
the opening half gave the Trojans a lead they would not relinquish,
with AU edging out to a nine-point cushion over the next four
minutes. But the Bobcats chipped away with a 7-2 run and trimmed
Anderson's lead to just 33-29 inside the final minute on a basket
from Adam McFerran. On the other end, Anderson's Brandon Young
answered with a buzzer-beating trey to set the 36-29 halftime
margin. Lees-McRae scored the first basket of the second half, but
Anderson's offensive momentum carried over into the second half as
the Trojans went on a 12-2 run to build a pair of 15-point leads
early in the half. The double-digit cushion held strong for the
rest of the game with the lead growing to 83-55 late in the
contest. , but the Eagles chipped away at the deficit and
eventually took the lead back with 46 seconds remaining in the
half. Ernsteins and Taylor Shugart each scored 14 points, while
Shugart recorded a game-high six rebounds on the night. Brandon
Young added 12 points along with Trey Britton and Nick Trull came
off the bench to net 10 points with Young dishing out a game-high
five assists. Lees-McRae's McFerran scored a game-high 28 points
with the Bobcats' Jeramaiah Henry adding nine points on the night.
Anderson will close out the regular season on Saturday when the
Trojans play host to Pfeiffer as AU battles for position in the
Conference Carolinas tournament that gets underway on Tuesday.
Anderson is already assured of hosting at least a first-round
contest on Tuesday at 7 p.m., but the opponent and seedings will
not be determined until the games are wrapped up Saturday night. Box
Score