Craig Hayes scored 31 points and Mount Olive used an 18-3 run midway through the second half to break away from a tie game as the regionally eighth-ranked Trojans concluded regular season play with an 88-79 victory over Queens in Conference Carolinas men's basketball Saturday at Charlotte, N.C. Derek Staton added 22 points to give the Trojans a regular season sweep over the East Division champions.

Mount Olive will be the East No. 2 seed and play host to West No. 3 Lees-McRae in the first round of the 2012 Conference Carolinas Men's Basketball Tournament Tuesday at Kornegay Arena. Tip-off is 7 p.m. Seedings and pairings for the conference tournament had already been determined Friday.

Mount Olive (19-7, 12-4 Conference Carolinas) trailed by three points when Deshaune Green's free throw and Dory Hines' layup tied the game 63-63 with 10:36 left in the game. Green's steal and layup put the Trojans ahead to stay.

Kendall Hargrove converted a three-point play and three-pointers by Hayes and Staton gave Mount Olive a 78-66 lead with 5:51 left to play.

Queens (18-9, 13-3) got as close as six points but Mount Olive hit 7-of-8 free throws in the final 2:12 to seal the win.

In the first half, Queens jumped out to an 8-1 lead as the Trojans went more than two minutes before hitting their first field goal. Back-to-back three-pointers by Staton and Hayes highlighted a run of 10 unanswered points and the Trojans built the lead to 22-13 with 11:13 left in the half.

The margin grew to 10 points before Antonio Stabler's three-point play triggered a Queens run. Nate Blackburn added a three-pointer and Stabler sank a pair of free throws with two seconds left to pull the Royals within 42-39 at halftime.

Hayes was 7-of-9 from the field in the first half, including 2-for-2 from three-point range for 17 points. Stabler and Daniel Bailey combined for 27 of Queens' 39 first-half points.

Queens pulled within a point on its first possession of the second half, but Mahamed Ibrahim's three-pointer with 16:28 left to play extended Mount Olive's lead to 54-48. Queens took its first lead of the second half as layups by Bailey started an ended an 8-0 run to give the Royals a 56-54 advantage with 14:28 remaining.

After Jordan McCain tied the game with a pair of free throws, Sean Eads put Queens back on top with a three-pointer. Mount Olive took a 60-59 lead on layups by Hargrove and Staton, but the Royals would answer on back-to-back baskets by Bailey. The Trojans would then hold Queens to a single field goal over the next seven minutes to take over the game.

McCain finished with 13 points for Mount Olive, while Hines added eight points, six rebounds and six assists. Hayes, who also shared team-high honors with six rebounds, was 10-for-15 from the field and 8-for-10 from the free throw line. Staton had a game-high four steals as the Trojans forced 13 Queens turnovers while committing only eight.

Bailey and Stabler finished with 25 points apiece for Queens. Stabler, who led all players with eight rebounds, was 9-for-12 from the field and 7-of-8 from the line. Eads added 14 points for the Royals.

Mount Olive finished the regular season with 11 wins in its final 12 games. The Trojans won three of their final four road games and went a perfect 11-0 at home during the regular season.

Mount Olive is seeking its second conference championship in the last three years and seventh NCAA Tournament bid in the last nine years. The conference tournament champion earns an automatic bid to the Southeast Regional of the 2012 NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Championship. The Trojans are also in contention for an at-large bid to the regional.

The semifinal round takes place Friday and the championship game is slated for Sunday afternoon. Highest remaining seeds host each round.