Gaffney, S.C.----The 15th-ranked Queens University of Charlotte Royals were able to hang on for a 63-59 victory over the Wingate University Bulldogs in NCAA Division II men’s basketball action Saturday evening on the campus of Limestone College. The Royals improve to 2-0 on the season, while the Bulldogs fall to 0-2 overall.
 
Antonio Stabler led the Queens attack with 15 points. Daniel Bailey added 12 points and four steals for the Royals.
 
Junior forward Odell Turner (Charlotte, N.C.) had game highs of 18 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Wingate attack. Senior guard Chase Smith (Upper Marlboro, Md.) added 13 points, while junior guard Eddie Lewis (Rocky Point, N.C.) had 11 points and seven boards for the Bulldogs.
 
A Smith triple and Quan Alexander (Charlotte, N.C.) free throw put Wingate on top by five 8:21 into the opening half. The Royals answered with five straight points to tie it on a layup from David Mason with 9:23 remaining. Turner would then score 10 of Wingate’s final 14 points in the opening half, draining a triple and scoring on an old fashion three-point play to help the Bulldogs take a 28-25 advantage into halftime.
 
A jumper from Sean Eads, followed by a Sam Johnson dunk put Queens on top 39-32 six minutes into the second half. A layup from Brandon Nichols pushed the lead to eight with 8:47 remaining in the contest. A jumper and a triple from Lewis helped the Bulldogs trim the deficit to five a minute later.
 
Nichols answered with a layup to push the lead back to seven. A layup from Smith and a pair of Turner free throws got the Bulldogs to within four. A three-point play from Alexander made it a one-point game with five minutes remaining.  Bailey answered with a huge three for the Royals, while a pair of Stabler free throws put Queens on top 60-54 with 2:14 remaining. The ‘Dogs would get no closer than four the rest of the way.
 
Both teams shot 42 percent from the field on the night, but Queens forced 21 Wingate turnovers. The Royals committed just 12 turnovers on the night. The Bulldogs dominated the boards, out-rebounding Queens 42-27 on the night.
 
The Bulldogs return to action Tuesday, hosting Armstrong Atlantic Tuesday at 7 p.m.
  
(Wingate University assistant SID Hugh Patton wrote this article. Patton is a 2006 Wingate graduate with a B.A. degree in Communication Studies.)