Wingate, N.C.----Tusculum College junior forward Rob Troutman (Mt. Washington, Ky.) hit the game-winning shot with nine seconds left and the Pioneers survived two Wingate attempts to tie in the waning moments, picking up a 70-68 South Atlantic Conference men’s basketball victory over the Bulldogs Saturday evening in Cuddy Arena.

Tusculum improves to 10-8 overall and 4-3 in the SAC with the victory. Wingate slips to 10-8 overall and 3-4 in the SAC. The Bulldogs host Lenoir-Rhyne University Wednesday night at 8 p.m. The TC Pioneers return home Wednesday night, hosting Mars Hill College at 8 p.m.

For the Pioneers, senior guard Kyle Moore (Gainesville, Fla.) led the way with 16 points. Senior guard Jimmy Boone (Greeneville, Tenn.) tallied 15 points, while senior forward Josh Bennett (Snow Hill, Md.) contributed 13 points and six rebounds off the Tusculum bench. Bennett and the Pioneer reserves outscored the Bulldog bench 22-10.

For Wingate, sophomore guard Jaime Vaughn (McDonough, Ga.) scored a career-high 26 points to lead all scorers. Vaughn hit nine-of-14 field goals. He was a perfect six-for-six from three-point land. Freshman forward Quan Alexander (Charlotte, N.C.) added 15 points, six rebounds and three blocks for the Bulldogs.

The wild contest featured 14 ties and 17 lead changes. The second half was tied nine times and included seven lead changes. Wingate had two chances to force overtime in the final seconds. Vaughn missed a jumper with three seconds left. Troutman got the rebound, but he was called for traveling with exactly one second to play.

Wingate called time out and Bulldog head coach Brian Good designed a set play for freshman center Odell Turner (Charlotte, N.C.). Freshman point guard Ethan Kincaid (Morganton, N.C.) threw a lob towards the hoop, but Turner missed the lay-up at the buzzer.

The Bulldogs led 41-38 at intermission, thanks to 19 first-half points from Vaughn. Moore and Boone had 13 points each for Tusculum in the opening frame. The Pioneers led 28-21 on a lay-up by sophomore guard Nick Gagel (Louisville, Ky.) with exactly 10 minutes remaining in the first half.

Wingate finished the opening stanza with a 20-10 run to take the three-point halftime lead. Vaughn contributed 11 points to the flurry, including three baskets from downtown. Both teams shot 56.5 percent from the floor in the first half (13-of-23). Wingate hit five-of-eight three-pointers in the first 20 minutes (62.5 percent), while Tusculum made four-of-eight from downtown in the same time frame (50 percent).

On the evening, Tusculum shot 52.2 percent from the floor (24-of-46). The Bulldogs hit 45.1 percent (23-of-51). Wingate outrebounded Tusculum 31-24, thanks to 12 rebounds from Turner. The Myers Park High School product had seven offensive rebounds. The Pioneers fought for seven offensive rebounds in the second half, converting them into seven crucial second-chance points. TC had only one offensive board in the first frame.

The Pioneers had 36 points in the paint, compared to 22 points in the paint for the Bulldogs. Troutman flirted with a double-double, filling out his statistics ledger with nine points, seven rebounds, six assists and two steals. Tusculum sophomore point guard Justin Steigerwald (Cincinnati, Ohio) had eight points, five assists and four rebounds. He had the game-winning assist to Troutman.

Turner added nine points for Wingate, while senior guard Larry Staley (Charlotte, N.C.) contributed eight points. Five players entered the game averaging double-figure points for the Bulldogs.