LEBANON, Tenn. – The eighth-seeded Lindsey Wilson men's basketball team fell short of pulling off the upset of top-seeded and ranked No. 2 Pikeville (Ky.), falling 78-72 in the Mid-South Conference Basketball Tournament Quarterfinals presented by GoJohnnyGo 5K/10K Run/Walk on Thursday evening.

D'on Hall led Lindsey Wilson with 19 points and four rebounds in the loss. Senior Daronte' Clark finished with 16 points including a game-high four three pointers in his final appearance as a Blue Raider. Tony Horne added 15 points while Keshaun Mayfield finished with 14 points and six assists.

Lindsey Wilson (16-15, 7-11 MSC) opened the game with a 2-0 lead on a pair of free throws after No. 2 Pikeville (28-2, 17-1 MSC) was issued a technical foul during warm-ups. Clark would score the first points from the field for the Blue Raiders when he hit a three-point shot to give Lindsey Wilson a 5-0 lead.

The Blue Raiders steadily built their lead up to seven points at 13-6 with 15:36 to play in the first. The teams exchanged baskets for the next few possessions until Clark hit another three to give Lindsey Wilson a 24-12 lead, their largest of the game.

Just like the two regular-season meetings between these teams, Pikeville responded to a Lindsey Wilson lead with a big run of their own. The Bears would score 14 straight points to take their first lead of the game at 26-24 with 4:43 to play in the first half. The Blue Raiders stopped the bleeding momentarily on a free throw by Mayfield, but the Bears offense continued to apply pressure and added a 12-6 run to close out the half taking a 38-31 lead into the break.

Lindsey Wilson went without a field goal for nine minutes and 39 seconds to end the first half. The Blue Raiders made a basket at the 9:44 mark and did not hit another shot until five seconds left in the half.

Lindsey Wilson shot 43.5 percent from the field in the first half compared to 52.2 percent by Pikeville. Both teams shot well from the free-throw line as Pikeville went 13-for-14 and the Blue Raiders went 9-for-10. The Bears grabbed 16 first-half rebounds compared to nine by Lindsey Wilson.

Hall helped jumpstart the Blue Raiders in the second half by hitting back-to-back threes followed by a fast-break dunk. Minutes later, a three by Clark tied the game at 44-44 and a three by Mayfield gave the Blue Raiders their first lead of the second half at 47-46 with 14:33 to play.

The game would become tied at 49-49 and again at 51-51 until Pikeville scored eight straight points to take a 59-51 lead with 7:25 to play. A three by Chase Cox and a pair of free throws by Horne cut the lead to 59-56 at the 6:53 mark.

Another Lindsey Wilson scoreless drought that lasted more than four minutes allowed Pikeville to build a 12-point lead, their largest of the game at 68-56 with 3:35 to play.

The Blue Raiders refused to quit and used a layup by Horne and three three-point shots by Hall, Clark and Cox to cut the lead to 72-67 with 1:34 to play. But the Bears made their free throws when it mattered most and Lindsey Wilson was unable to get enough shots to fall ending the game 78-72 in favor of Pikeville.

The Blue Raiders finished the game shooting 46.0 percent from the field including 44.0 percent from beyond the arc. The Bears shot 51.0 percent from the field and just 25.0 percent from three. Pikeville dominated the glass grabbing 33 rebounds compared to 21 by Lindsey Wilson. The Bears entered the game shooting 66.6 percent on the season from the charity stripe, but shot 86.2 percent today including 6-of-8 in the final minute to help seal the win.

Pikeville was led by Mid-South Conference Player of the Year Bruce Reed with a 26 point, 11 rebound double-double. Josh Whitaker finished with 22 points and Keala King added 18 points and seven rebounds.

Lindsey Wilson ends its season with a 16-15 overall record and 7-11 mark in MSC play.