Salisbury, N.C.----The Wingate University Bulldogs look to stop a two-game losing streak when they visit Catawba College Wednesday night in South Atlantic Conference men’s basketball action. The Bulldogs enter the contest 10-10 overall and 6-4 in the SAC, in a three-way tie for third place in the league standings. Catawba is 5-13 overall and 2-8 in the conference.
 
The Bulldogs hosted the league’s top two teams last week, dropping a pair of tough contests. Wingate hosted fifth-ranked Lincoln Memorial on Saturday. The Bulldogs led 54-52 with six minutes remaining in the contest, but the Railsplitters rallied to take a 59-54 advantage at the 2:23 mark. Buckets from senior guard Jaime Vaughn (Tallahassee, Fla.) and junior forward Odell Turner (Charlotte, N.C.) cut the lead to one with 27 seconds remaining. LMU hit one free throw to go on top by two. A three-point attempt from Vaughn with eight seconds left would not fall, and the Railsplitters put the game away at the free throw line. Turner led the way with 12 points, while Vaughn added 10.
 
On Wednesday night, Wingate and Anderson were tied midway through the second half. The Trojans led by five with under five minutes remaining, but closed the game on a 15-4 run for a 70-54 victory. Vaughn had 11 points to lead the Wingate attack.
 
The Bulldogs overcame a 17-point halftime deficit at Brevard on the previous Saturday to notch a 61-57 victory. Turner, Vaughn and junior guard Paidrick Matilus (Boynton Beach, Fla.) had 12 points each, while a triple from junior guard Eddie Lewis (Rocky Point, N.C.) with 14 seconds remaining in the contest gave the ‘Dogs a four-point advantage, their largest lead of the game.
 
Wingate’s balanced attack has three players averaging in double figures, with six Bulldogs scoring at least six points per game. Vaughn leads the team and ranks 11th in the SAC with 14.9 points per game. Turner is 18th in the league, averaging 11.7 points per contest. He ranks third in the conference with 1.65 blocks per game and fifth with 7.0 rebounds per contests. Matilus is right behind him with 11.5 points per game, ranking second in the SAC, shooting 90.2 percent from the free throw line.
 
Junior guard Ethan Kincaid (Morganton, N.C.) is second in the SAC with 4.30 assists per game, while ranking third in the league in assist-to-turnover ratio. He also ranks 11th in the conference in steals and defensive rebounds. Lewis leads the SAC, shooting 54.4 percent from three-point range. Wingate leads the league and ranks third nationally with 6.1 blocks per game. Sophomore forward Jeff Parker (Madison, N.C.) is second in the SAC with 1.79 blocks per game, with sophomore forward Deion Turman (Pittsburgh, Pa.) ranking fifth with 1.53 blocks per contest.
 
Wingate has won four straight against Catawba, beating the Indians three times last season, including a 65-60 win in the Food Lion SAC Tournament semifinals. The teams met in early January of 2012 in Cuddy Arena, with the Bulldogs prevailing 77-69. Catawba led by five with 6:30 remaining in the contest, but Wingate closed the game on a 19-6 run to secure the victory. Matilus had a game-high 22 points, hitting seven-of-12 shots from the field, including four-of-four from three-point range.