BOX SCORE

Mars Hill, N.C.----The Wingate University men’s basketball team shot a season-best 64.4 percent from the floor Saturday afternoon, taking a 95-70 South Atlantic Conference victory over Mars Hill College in Stanford Arena. With their sixth consecutive victory, the Bulldogs sweep the season series over the Lions. Wingate is 16-10 overall and 12-4 in the SAC. Mars Hill is 5-20 overall and 3-13 in the SAC.

Wingate junior forward Odell Turner (Charlotte, N.C.) led five Bulldogs in double figures with his 15 points. Junior guard Paidrick Matilus (Boynton Beach, Fla.) had 14 points, while senior guard Chase Smith (Upper Marlboro, Md.) netted 13 points with a team-best three three-point field goals. Sophomore forward Deion Turman (Pittsburgh, Pa.) posted 12 points, while classmate Jeffrey Parker (Madison, N.C.) contributed 10 points on five-of-five shooting.

Mars Hill freshman guard Terrell Harris (Indiantown, Fla.) had a game-high 31 points, hitting 12-of-16 field goals. Lion senior forward Sammy Emile (Lake Worth, Fla.) had 12 points as the Bulldogs held the conference’s leading scorer 13 points below his average.

The visiting Bulldogs led wire-to-wire, posting the best shooting percentage (64.4 percent, 38-of-59) by a Mars Hill visitor this season. Wingate hit a sizzling 75 percent in the first half (21-of-28) as the Bulldogs took a 46-31 advantage at the halftime break. Matilus hit back-to-back jumpers to put Wingate up 6-0 with three minutes expired and the Bulldogs never looked back.

A dunk by Turman on an assist from senior guard Jaime Vaughn (Tallahassee, Fla.) put Wingate up 23-12 with 9:47 to play in the first frame. A Vaughn fast-break lay-up helped the Bulldogs double-up the Lions 38-19 at the 3:35 mark. The 19-point bulge was Wingate’s largest lead of the first half.

Mars Hill would get no closer than 17 points after intermission. A Matilus triple gave Wingate a 53-33 lead with 16:53 remaining in the contest. Two free throws from freshman forward Mike Tyson (Kinston, N.C.) with 78 seconds left gave the Bulldogs their biggest margin at 93-63.

The Bulldogs cooled down in the second half, but still converted 54.8 percent of their field goal attempts (17-of-31). On the afternoon, the Lions shot 41.1 percent (23-of-56). Mars Hill managed only one three-point field goal in 11 tries (9.1 percent). Wingate drained seven-of-13 triples (53.8 percent).

Wingate cleaned up the glass, outrebounding Mars Hill 42-24. Bulldog junior point guard Ethan Kincaid (Morganton, N.C.) topped the charts with his eight rebounds. Kincaid filled up his statistical ledger with seven points and six assists. Turner and Turman had seven rebounds each. Lion junior forward Khouriachi Thiam (Dakar, Senegal, Africa) had a team-best six rebounds for the hosts. Mars Hill scored 29 points off 21 Wingate turnovers.

The Bulldogs had 50 points in the paint, compared to 34 inside markers for the Lions. Wingate had a season-high 24 assists. Kincaid’s six dimes led the way; Vaughn and junior guard Eddie Lewis (Rocky Point, N.C.) had five helpers each.

Wingate has outscored its opponents by exactly 20 points per game during the aforementioned six-game winning streak (80.7 to 60.7). The Bulldogs are shooting 53.5 percent from the floor (185-of-346), while holding their opposition to 38.9 shooting accuracy (124-of-319) in the six games. Three Bulldogs (Parker, Turman and Smith) are shooting 60.0 percent or better in the last six games. Wingate is outrebounding its opponents by 9.2 rebounds per game (37.7 to 28.5) during the same stretch.

Wingate will play its third road game in as many outings Wednesday, visiting league-leading Anderson (S.C.) University for an 8 p.m. contest. Mars Hill visits Catawba Wednesday for an 8 p.m. league encounter.