Wingate, N.C.----The Wingate University men’s basketball team finished the game on a 15-4 run to take an 83-77 NCAA Division II victory over Belmont Abbey College Friday afternoon in Cuddy Arena. The Bulldog bench outscored the Crusader reserves 39-24 with junior guard Eddie Lewis (Rocky Point, N.C.) hitting six-of-six three-point field goals en route to a career-high 18 points.
 
Wingate junior forward Odell Turner (Charlotte, N.C.) led the Bulldogs (5-7 overall) with 20 points and eight rebounds. The Myers Park High School graduate hit 12-of-13 free throws, nailing six charity tosses in both halves. Senior guard Jaime Vaughn (Tallahassee, Fla.) had 16 points and six assists to support Lewis and the Bulldog reserves. Wingate junior guard Paidrick Matilus (Boynton Beach, Fla.) contributed 10 points.
 
Senior center Kyle Phillips (Lexington, S.C.) filled the statistics book with 20 points, eight rebounds, six blocked shots and two assists for Belmont Abbey (7-3 overall). Phillips converted nine-of-14 shots from inside and outside. Crusader junior guard Tyshawn Good (Jamaica, N.Y.) had 14 points (six below his Conference Carolinas-leading average) and four assists. Junior guard Jay Council (Camden, S.C.) added 10 points and three assists for the visitors.
 
Lewis hit four-of-four triples in the first half as Wingate earned a 38-35 lead at intermission. A jumper by BAC junior guard Terrone Sheffey (Dallas, N.C.) gave the visitors a 29-23 edge with 4:17 remaining in the opening frame. The six-point margin was Belmont Abbey’s largest lead of the afternoon.
 
Fittingly, Lewis sparked the Bulldog rally as he hit back-to-back triples (2:00, 1:26) to make the score 35-33 Belmont Abbey. Turner hit two free throws at 1:02 to tie the contest at 35-35. Lewis hit a deep three-pointer at the halftime buzzer from a Vaughn feed to send Wingate to the locker room up by three.
 
The Bulldogs took advantage of the momentum swing, inching ahead 42-35 on a Turner jumper at the 19:04 plateau. The seven-point bulge would be Wingate’s biggest lead of the second stanza. Belmont Abbey launched another crusade, putting together a 14-5 flurry to take a 49-47 lead at the 12:40 mark. The run concluded with a three-point field goal by sophomore guard Ryan Conrad (Charlotte, N.C.).
 
A three-pointer by BAC redshirt freshman guard Tim Mason (McDonough, Ga.) put the visitors up 73-68 with four minutes to go. Turner and Lewis sandwiched two free throws and a three-pointer around an Abbey inside hoop to make the score 75-73 Crusaders with three minutes left.
 
All-South Atlantic Conference guard Vaughn hit a three-point field goal at the 2:43 mark to give Wingate the lead for keeps at 76-75. Turner contributed a dunk and two free throws down the stretch, while Vaughn drained two freebies as well. Belmont Abbey had a chance to tie the game with 17 ticks remaining, but they could not convert a three-point try.
 
Wingate converted 14 Belmont Abbey turnovers into 18 crucial points. The Bulldogs made only eight miscues, with the Crusaders scoring only four points following the Wingate mistakes. Bulldog junior point guard Ethan Kincaid (Morganton, N.C.) had four assists, four steals, four rebounds, three points and one blocked shot.
 
Belmont Abbey outrebounded Wingate 42-36. Crusader senior forward Matthew Graves (Upper Marlboro, Md.) had 10 boards. Phillips and sophomore forward Darryl Durham (Atlanta, Ga.) pulled down eight rebounds each. Turner matched the Crusader duo with his eight caroms. Bulldog sophomore forward Deion Turman (Pittsburgh, Pa.) had seven rebounds, five points and two blocked shots.
 
The contest was the final non-conference game for both teams. The Bulldogs return to league play Wednesday, hosting Catawba at 8 p.m. Belmont Abbey visits Lees-McRae Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.

Newspaper Box Score
Belmont Abbey vs Wingate
12/30/11 4 p.m. at Wingate, N.C.

WINGATE MEN 83, BELMONT ABBEY 77
BELMONT ABBEY (7-4 overall)
Phillips, Kyle 9-14 2-6 20; Good, Tyshawn 5-10 4-4 14; Council, Jay 4-13 0-0 10; Sheffey, Terrone 4-7 1-1 9; Kuhlman, Justin 3-3 0-0 6; Graves, Matthew 2-5 0-0 4; Sowell, Zach 2-7 0-0 4; Durham, Darryl 2-4 0-0 4; Mason, Tim 1-1 0-0 3; Conrad, Ryan 1-4 0-0 3; Long, Alonzo 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 33-68 7-11 77.
WINGATE (5-7 overall)
Turner, Odell 4-10 12-13 20; Lewis, Eddie 6-7 0-0 18; Vaughn, Jaime 5-11 4-5 16; Matilus, Paidrick 3-16 2-2 10; Alexander, Quan 3-7 0-0 7; Turman, Deion 2-3 1-2 5; Parker, Jeffrey 1-4 2-6 4; Kincaid, Ethan 1-2 1-2 3; Carpenter, Robert 0-2 0-0 0; Daye, Ryan 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 25-63 22-30 83.
Belmont Abbey.................   35   42  -   77
Wingate.......................   38   45  -   83
3-point goals--Belmont Abbey 4-13 (Council, Jay 2-6; Mason, Tim 1-1; Conrad, Ryan 1-2; Sheffey, Terrone 0-2; Good, Tyshawn 0-2), Wingate 11-26 (Lewis, Eddie 6-6; Vaughn, Jaime 2-6; Matilus, Paidrick 2-8; Alexander, Quan 1-2; Carpenter, Robert 0-2; Daye, Ryan 0-1; Kincaid, Ethan 0-1). Fouled out--Belmont Abbey-None, Wingate-None. Rebounds--Belmont Abbey 42 (Graves, Matthew 10), Wingate 36 (Turner, Odell 8). Assists--Belmont Abbey 19 (Good, Tyshawn 4), Wingate 13 (Vaughn, Jaime 6). Total fouls--Belmont Abbey 24,Wingate 15. Technical fouls--Belmont Abbey-None, Wingate-None. A-242
NCAA Division II men's basketball, Cuddy Arena, Wingate, N.C.
Wingate hosts Catawba Wednesday, Jan. 4 (8 p.m.)
Belmont Abbey visits Lees-McRae Tuesday, Jan. 3 (7:30 p.m.)