WILSON, N.C. (Jan. 23) – Despite holding the lead at halftime, the Trojans were unable to prevent a second-half surge at Barton in a 103-94 loss on Thursday night in Conference Carolinas play.
With the loss, the University of Mount Olive men's basketball program drops to 7-12 this season with a 5-6 mark in league action. The Bulldogs have won the last six meetings in the series, including four victories on their home court. Meanwhile, Barton improves to 10-8 overall behind a 6-4 record in conference play.
Freshman guard
Chase Dawson registered his 11th 20-point performance of the season after scoring a game-high 27 points on 11-of-20 shooting with three rebounds and five assists in 29 minutes. He is the top-scoring freshman in the NCAA Division II with 20.7 points per game while shooting an impressive 51.4 percent from the field.
Redshirt sophomore
Lureon Walker finished with 22 points on 8-of-13 attempts while adding nine rebounds and two assists in 27 minutes. Freshman
Raul Perez posted his second career double-double with 15 points, 10 rebounds, two assists, and two steals in 26 minutes.
The Trojans started the contest with a 10-6 edge after Dawson and Walker combined for eight points in the opening five minutes of the game. Barton responded with eight straight points to grab a 14-10 lead before UMO stormed back to tie the contest at 17-17 with 11:24 remaining. The sides traded points over the next seven-plus minutes as the Bulldogs held a 32-31 edge. Mount Olive closed the first half by scoring 11 of the final 17 points to hold a 42-38 advantage at the break.
Barton nailed a trio of three-pointers to begin the second half to take a 47-46 lead before Mount Olive made five-of-seven from the field to tie the contest at 58-58 with 14:50 left. The Bulldogs mounted a 13-2 run to open up a 71-60 advantage before the sides exchanged baskets for the next three-plus minutes. The Trojans responded with 13 unanswered points to tie the game at 79-79 with 6:57 remaining. Barton managed to regain its lead at 89-81 with four-plus minutes left before sealing the contest with 10-of-14 shooting from the free-throw line, 103-94.
Mount Olive finished the contest shooting 38-of-81 (46.9 percent) from the floor while converting 71.4 percent (15-of-21) from the free-throw line. Meanwhile, Barton posted a .529 field goal percentage (36-of-68) and made 10-of-17 (58.8 percent) from three-point range. The Bulldogs finished with a 43-38 rebounding advantage while the Trojans scored 46 points in the paint.
Barton graduate student Jett Fortuny recorded a team-high 25 points on 9-of-13 shooting with seven three-pointers in 37 minutes. Senior Shawn Nelson posted a double-double with 20 points, 12 assists, six rebounds, four steals, and three blocks in 33 minutes. Junior Jaylen Faber finished with 19 points, three rebounds, and four assists in 28 minutes.
Mount Olive returns to the court on Saturday, Jan. 25, to face Shorter in a road contest, starting at 4 p.m.
