Men's Basketball Loses to No. 2 Queens
The Lions lost to no. 2 Queens 93-73 in South Atlantic Conference men’s basketball action Saturday evening in the Levine Center.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The Lions lost to no. 2 Queens 93-73 in South Atlantic Conference men's basketball action Saturday evening in the Levine Center. Mars Hill fell to 4-22 overall and 1-17 in the league. The Royals improved to 25-1 on the season, 17-1 in the SAC.
Brandon Watkins led the Lions recording a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Austin Gilyard added 18 points while Luke Van-Rijn rounded out the double-digit scorers for the Lions with 16 points. Mars Hill hit 42.6% (26-61) of their field goals, 44.4% (8-18) of their three-point attempts and 72.2% (13-18) of their foul shots.
Mike Davis and Jalin Alexander led the Royals scoring 19 and 18 points in the win, respectively. Davis added seven rebounds, four assists and three blocks. Queens connected on 48.6% (35-72) of their shots from the floor, 35.7% from three-point range and 61.5% (8-13) at the charity stripe. The Royals edged the Lions on the boards, 40-36. Queens scored 14 points off MHU miscues and 14 second chance points.
A layup by Gilyard with 19:23 left in the first half gave Mars Hill a 4-3 lead. On Queens' ensuing possession, Davis nailed a three-pointer at the 18:58 mark and the Royals would never trail again. Queens led by as many as 21 points in the first frame after Alexander hit a shot from behind the arc with 5:42 left in the first period. The teams went into the locker room with the Royals enjoying a 16-point advantage (56-40).
A 5-0 run by Queens to start the second half gave the Royals a 21-point lead (63-42) after Ike Agusi scored in the lane at the 18:35 mark. Mars Hill answered with a 7-2 run to cut the lead back to 16 points (65-49) when Vernon Jackson hit a layup with 15:55 left in regulation but unfortunately that was as close as the Lions would get. Queens went on to lead by as many as 30 points with 5:47 left in the contest after Davis hit one of his five three-pointers in the game. Queens cruised down the stretch to the 20 point victory (93-73).
Mars Hill will host Newberry on Monday, February 19. Tip-off in Stanford Arena is set for 8 p.m.
