LEBANON, Tenn. – The Lindsey Wilson College men's basketball team outlasted Cumberland (Tenn.) University 70-61 Thursday night at the Dallas Floyd Recreation Center.
Lindsey Wilson (11-8, 2-5 MSC) was led by Daronte' Clark with 18 points including hitting 4-of-7 shots from three-point range. Keshaun Mayfield finished with 14 points and led the team with seven rebounds and three assists. D'on Hall added 11 points.
The Blue Raiders and Bulldogs opened the game exchanging baskets until Mayfield hit a three to give Lindsey Wilson a 7-5 lead. The lead would be exchanged again until Cumberland went on an 11-2 run to take a 19-12 lead with 11:27 left in the first half. Lindsey Wilson would answer with a 9-2 run to tie the game at 21-21.
The Bulldogs would score the next five points, followed immediately by back-to-back Daronte' Clark three pointers to give the Blue Raiders a 27-26 lead. The teams would exchange leads again until Mayfield made a layup to give Lindsey Wilson the 36-35 advantage with 2:03 to play. Neither team was able to find a basket in the final two minutes of the first half.
Lindsey Wilson shot 50 percent from the field in the first half, followed closely by Cumberland with 48.4 percent. The Blue Raiders shot 5-of-9 from three-point range compared to just 3-of-10 for the Bulldogs. Cumberland held the rebounding advantage 19-13 in the first.
The second half opened with the Blue Raiders leading by as many as six. The Bulldogs would hang around and eventually fight back with a 9-0 run to take a 55-52 lead.
Lindsey Wilson would respond by putting together a string of defensive stops en route to an 18-6 run to close out the game. Dusan Pantovic came up with a block and took two charges along with a steal and fast-break layup by Mayfield in the closing minutes to give Lindsey Wilson the 70-61 win.
Cumberland (11-5, 3-4 MSC) was led by Marquel Hickerson with 21 points. Lamar Brinkley recorded 12 points and eight rebounds in the loss.
The Blue Raiders out-shot the Bulldogs 48.1 percent (25-of-52) to 39.3 percent (22-of-56), including shooting 46.2 percent from beyond the arc in the win.
Lindsey Wilson returns to action as they host the University of the Cumberlands (Ky.) on Jan. 23 at 8 p.m. CT.
