Wingate, N.C.----The Wingate University Bulldogs will look to climb above .500 on the season, as they host one of the nation’s top scoring offenses in Newberry College Wednesday night at 8 p.m. in Cuddy Arena. Wingate enters the contest 8-8 overall and 4-2 in the SAC. The Wolves are 8-5 overall and 3-3 in the conference.
 
Wingate notched a 90-70 victory over Mars Hill College on Saturday. The 20-point victory was the first double-digit margin in a Wingate contest this season. Junior forward Quan Alexander (Charlotte, N.C.) had a season-high 22 points, while junior guard Ethan Kincaid (Morganton, N.C.) handed out a career-best 10 assists. Senior guard Jaime Vaughn (Tallahassee, Fla.) added 16 points for the Bulldogs, while senior guard Chase Smith (Upper Marlboro, Md.) had 11 points and three steals.
 
Wingate shot 49 percent from the field on the day, hitting six-of-19 from three-point range (31.6 percent). The Bulldogs set season highs for points (90), field goals (34), assists (22) and steals (16), while forcing a season-high 19 turnovers. Junior guard Paidrick Matilus (Boynton Beach, Fla.) had a game-high five steals to lead the ‘Dogs, while sophomore forward Robert Carpenter (Fayetteville, N.C.) added four. The Bulldogs held a 42-32 rebounding advantage and 44-28 edge in points in the paint. The Wingate bench outscored the Mars Hill bench 35-13 on the afternoon.
 
The Bulldogs have won five of their last six games, which includes a 3-1 mark in league play. Wingate’s balanced attack has seen six different players lead the team in scoring in the last six contests. The ‘Dogs have scored at least 77 points in four of their last five victories. The Bulldogs have only allowed one opponent this season to score over 80 points.
 
Wingate has three players averaging double figures this season, while seven Bulldogs are scoring at least 5.5 points per game. Vaughn leads the way with 14.7 points per game. Matilus is averaging 12.1 points per contest, while ranking in the conference, shooting 88.7 percent from the free throw line. Junior forward Odell Turner (Charlotte, N.C.) is scoring 11.7 points per game, while ranking fifth in the league with 7.3 rebounds per game and fourth with 1.38 blocks per contest. Kincaid is second in the SAC with 4.38 assists per game, and ranks third in assist-to-turnover ratio. Sophomore forward Jeff Parker (Madison, N.C.) is second with 1.93 blocks per game, with sophomore forward Deion Turman (Pittsburgh, Pa.) ranking third at 1.60 blocks per game.
 
Wingate leads the SAC and ranks fourth nationally with 6.1 blocks per game. The ‘Dogs also lead the league in three-point field goal percentage defense, while ranking second in free throw percentage and third in rebounding margin.
 
The Bulldogs defeated Newberry in both meetings during the 2010-11 season. Vaughn poured in 36 points in the road victory for the Bulldogs, knocking down 14-of-15 free throws on the day. Vaughn scored 28 points in the home victory, hitting 12-of-13 from the free throw line while also handing out five assists. Turner added 20 points, seven rebounds and five blocks for the Bulldogs.  
 
The Wolves are scoring a league-best 91.7 points per game this season, and have topped the 100-point plateau four times. That includes a season-high 122 points against Mars Hill, when Newberry knocked down 15 three-pointers. The Wolves shoot a league-best 42 percent from three-point range, and knock down a conference best 9.85 triples per game. The Wolves won 88-69 over Carson-Newman Saturday. Dondray Walker led the way with 21 points and nine rebounds, while Quayshun Hawkins added 15 points and eight boards. Savad Gardner leads the Wolves with 16.5 points per game, shooting 64.7 percent from the field. Walker and Hawkins are next with 14.5 and 13.8 points per game, respectively, while combining to knock down 67 triples on the year. Both shoot over 42 percent from beyond the arc.