COLUMBIA, Ky. – The Lindsey Wilson men's basketball team was able to hold off a surging Martin Methodist (Tenn.) squad 82-75 on Wednesday night at Biggers Sports Center.

The No. 17-ranked RedHawks (7-5) came from 15 points down in the second half to cut the No. 19-ranked Blue Raider (11-3) lead down to five points with under a minute to play, but Lindsey Wilson went 5-for-7 from the free throw line down the stretch to help seal the victory.

Wednesday's win moves the Blue Raiders to a perfect 8-0 at home this season.

Lindsey Wilson scored the first five points of the back-and-forth contest, but Martin Methodist responded with a 10-5 run to send the game to a 10-10 tie after the opening seven minutes.

Ja'Ln Williams broke the tie with a three pointer as the shot clock expired to put the Blue Raiders up 13-10, and Dmitry Utolin followed with a pair of free throws to push the lead to 15-10. But once again, the RedHawks were quick to respond with five-straight points of their own to tie the game.

The Blue Raiders came right back with another run, but this time it was an 18-4 effort capped off by a basket from Dylan Gaskin to put Lindsey Wilson up 33-19. Charles Sutton, Utolin, Pepper Ben Ofokile, Dylan Gaskin, Wallace and Williams all contributed points during the run. Lindsey Wilson used a system of screens and quick passes and a systematic offense to free up shooters and a during the 14-point swing.

With less than 30 seconds to play in the half, Martin Methodist trimmed the deficit down to eight at 35-27 and held possession of the the ball, but DJ Lambert stole a pass and drove to the basket, making the layup and drawing the foul. Lambert made the ensuing free throw with four seconds to go to put Lindsey Wilson up 38-27 at the half.

The Blue Raiders shot 45.2 percent from the field in the opening half and made 5-of-12 shots from beyond the arc. Lindsey Wilson also notched a perfect 5-for-5 mark from the charity stripe and committed just five turnovers in the opening half. The Blue Raiders put forth a strong effort on the defensive end and were quick to run the floor after a defensive rebound, both of which helped Lindsey Wilson build their double-digit advantage.

Martin Methodist shot 36.7 percent from the floor and made just one of their seven attempts from three-point range in the opening half.

Lindsey Wilson extended their lead to 15 points at 42-27 at the 18:24 mark in the second half. But that lead was quickly erased thanks to an 11-2 run by the RedHawks over the next two and a half minutes as they cut the lead to six points at 44-38 with 16:08 to play.

For the next six minutes, Lindsey Wilson pushed the lead to double digits multiple times, only to have it trimmed back down to single digits on the ensuing possessions by Martin Methodist.

The back-and-forth affair continued until Williams knocked down a three to put the Blue Raiders ahead 68-55 with 5:28 to play. Lindsey Wilson was unable to penetrate the RedHawk defense and was forced to rely on their three-point shooting abilities, but the Blue Raiders were ready to answer the call and hit the three pointers when they needed them.

With the help of a full court press, Martin Methodist again erased the deficit and scored seven-consecutive points to cut the lead down to six points at 68-62 with less than four minutes to play.

As soon as the Blue Raiders pushed the lead back to 10, Martin Methodist made a quick layup, stole a pass using their full court press and knocked down a three to cut the lead to 75-70 with 1:13 to play.

But as close as the RedHawks came, they were never able to cut the lead to a one-possession game as the Blue Raiders went 5-for-7 from the free throw line in the final minute to hold on for the 82-75 victory.

Lindsey Wilson finished shooting 51.7 percent from the field and 36.4 percent from three. Martin Methodist shot 43.1 percent from the floor and 25.0 percent from deep.

Utolin led all scorers with 25 points on the night, followed by Sutton with 17 and Wallace with 16.

The RedHawks were led by Darius Forrest who finished with 22 points in the loss.

The Blue Raiders are back in action on Jan. 7 when they resume Mid-South Conference play with a trip to No. 1 Pikeville (Ky.).