Anderson University

ANDERSON, S.C. - Anderson University Men's Basketball (21-1, 15-1 SAC) remains undefeated at home after an electrifying battle against conference opponent Carson-Newman (13-9, 8-8 SAC) on Saturday evening.
 
"Two big wins in Abney tonight!" said head coach Jimmie Williams. "Fired us up seeing Coach JB and out women's team get it done against a really good Carson-Newman team."
 
The Eagles surged past the Trojans early in the opening half with a 9-0 run before grabbing an 11-point lead with 10 minutes left until the break. The Black and Gold found a rhythm with a 6-0 run to even the score. The Eagles matched Anderson's energy to steal back the lead rounding out first.
 
"Tonight was another defensive battle." added Williams. "Proud of how we stayed together after getting off to a slow start. Tonight was definitely the first game we got to the media timeout point without a point on the board. We were getting good looks; they just don't go. It's a special thing to dig even deeper on the defensive end when shots aren't falling. I love that about our team. Another key to the game was creating 20 turnovers that led to us getting going on offense. Proud of who we are in the face of adversity."
 
The Trojans delivered in prime time with late magic on the court. Freshman Rashawn Inglemon (Sacramento, Calif.) notched deep three from center court for a highlight worthy buzzer beater bucket. Senior Malachai Reeves (Lexington, S.C.) followed with an and one three assisted by junior AJ Wright Jr. (Clearwater, Fla.) for another cinematic bucket as the shot clock ran out. AU carried its momentum until the very end of the contest, recording a 12-point lead with one minute remaining.
 
"Osmar and AJ really led well tonight for us in huddles and timeouts, and KD and Rashawn make a half-court shot at the end of the shot clock in the second half. The crazy thing is, when he shot it, I thought to myself, that's going in. Kid has a knack for shot making. Malachi's and one three late in the game were another huge play that comes to mind."
 
Inglemon led the Trojans on the floor with 17 points, shooting 66.6% from behind the arc and 75.0% from the charity stripe. Defensively, he added one block and three steals to Anderson's total.
 
Redshirt-Senior Kadyn Dawkins posted 16 points on the board, shooting 66.6% from the line and notching five rebounds with one steal. Junior Osmar Garcia-Araujo (Sugar Hill, Ga.) finished off Anderson's double-digit scorers with 10 points on the game 10 rebounds and three steals for his fifth double-double of the season. Wright Jr. added seven points and six assists with a 75.0 shooting percentage from the foul line. He also recorded three steals on the game to notch his 200th career steal Saturday's contest. 
 
Although the Eagles hold a slight edge over the Trojans in most major statistical categories, Anderson tallied 20 caused turnovers on the court with 12 steals and 29 points off turnovers.
 
"Happy with how we finished tonight and that we continue to find ways to win. Special shoutout to all our parents that were here for parents' weekend. Pretty cool seeing them all connect with each other and how well they support our team. Our great kids come from great families. I love this team."
 
The Black and Gold returns on the road Wednesday, Jan. 11 when they travel to Coker for a 7:30 p.m. South Atlantic Conference matchup.