Bears slide past Lions in Mars Hill home opener
The Mars Hill men's basketball team (0-2, 0-2 SAC) was edged by Lenoir-Rhyne (2-0, 2-0 SAC) late on Wednesday afternoon by a score of 69-65.
MARS HILL, N.C. - The Mars Hill men's basketball team (0-2, 0-2 SAC) was edged by Lenoir-Rhyne (2-0, 2-0 SAC) late on Wednesday afternoon by a score of 69-65.
Lenoir-Rhyne trailed by one with less than eight minutes to play in the contest before Lions' foul trouble allowed the Bears to take the 51-50 lead as Darius Simmons connected on both of his free throw attempts. The Lions knotted the game at 54 apiece with 5:32 to play before two Davion Bradford free throws started a 5-0 run that proved to be enough of an advantage for the Bears down the stretch.
Mars Hill pulled within one on two separate occasions in the final 30 seconds of play, but were unable to regain their lead. Lenoir-Rhyne hit 18-of-25 second half free throws leading them to the four-point win.
Simmons led all players in the half with 12 points while Reggie Wright paced the Lions' offense with nine followed by Isayah Johnson and Jordan Gant's eight apiece.
To open the contest, the Lions went up 4-2 off of a Wright jump shot before a Mason Hawks three-pointer became the catalyst for a Bears' 10-2 run that saw Lenoir-Rhyne hold the 12-6 advantage with 13:28 to play in the first half. Hawks hit another three-pointer with less than nine minutes to play that saw the Bears' lead extend into double-digits, up 20-8.
An 11-2 run for the Lions pulled Mars Hill within three as Trey Belin netted nine in the span including two three-pointers. The Bears extended their lead back to eight at the buzzer following a Bradford dunk.
Belin and Simmons led their respective teams with nine points apiece in the first half. Jamal Bryant pulled down six of his game-high 11 rebounds.
Mars Hill exploded out of the gate to open the second half, going on a 15-4 run to take the 39-36 lead just 4:55 into the stanza. Following Belin's third three-pointer of the contest with 11:14 to play, the Lions extended their lead to seven, their largest margin on the afternoon.
Simmons led all players with 21 points followed by Hawks' 15. Both Wright and Bryant had 13 points for Mars Hill with Bryant's 11 rebounds giving him the double-double. Belin added 12 points off the bench.
The Lions return to action on Saturday, December 19 when they host Catawba. Tipoff is scheduled for 4:30 p.m.
