Queens’ late push not enough against Wingate
A bad bounce, a missed free throw, an untimely turnover.
Queens and Wingate could have pointed to any or all of those things as a cause for victory or defeat in Wednesday night’s frantic South Atlantic Conference men’s basketball game at Cuddy Arena.
As it was, Wingate escaped with the 71-70 victory over the No. 9-ranked Royals – “hanging on for dear life,” as Bulldogs coach Brian Good put it, after leading by 18 points during the first half and holding a nine-point advantage with just less than four minutes to play.
Guard Mike Baez scored 16 points and guard Anthanee Doyle 14 for the Bulldogs (13-4, 9-2), who won their sixth straight game. They moved a half-game ahead of Queens (14-2, 8-2) into second place in the conference.
“We just keep finding a way,” Good said. “Every game has a different feel to it. I thought we played two solid halves of defense in this one.”
Senior guard Rob Lewis led all scorers for Queens with 19 points, and junior guard Daniel Camps aded 12.
The Bulldogs hit six of their first nine 3-point attempts on their way to a largest lead of 28-10 midway through the first half.
But they didn’t wrap up the win until the Royals turned the ball over with 1.2 seconds to play after having a chance to take the victory.
Three who mattered
Mike Baez, Wingate: The freshman guard from Charlotte United Christian hit a couple of big baskets late as the Bulldogs extended their lead to nine points (71-62) with four minutes left. He also grabbed six rebounds.
Anthanee Doyle, Wingate: The junior guard was a big factor in Wingate’s early lead, scoring all but three of his points during the first half.
Rob Lewis, Queens: Helped spark the Royals late comeback, starting with a 3-pointer to begin the 8-0 run Queens finished the game on.
They said it
▪ “It was a great college basketball game that could have gone either way. The start had a lot to do with the finish. It takes a lot of energy to come back from 18 points down.” – Queens coach Bart Lundy.
▪ “When you’re playing against a team as good as Queens, you want to get off to a good start. It gives you a lot better chance than the other way around.” – Good.
Worth mentioning
▪ Queens will play at 4 p.m. Saturday at home against SAC foe Anderson. Wingate hosts Mars Hill in a conference game at 4 Saturday.
This story was originally published January 20, 2016 at 11:21 PM with the headline "Queens’ late push not enough against Wingate."