Men's Basketball | 1/6/2015 1:52:00 PM

Wingate, N.C.----After starting the season 7-1, the Wingate University Bulldogs have dropped four straight games. The 'Dogs look to snap the losing streak Wednesday night when they welcome Lenoir-Rhyne to Cuddy Arena at 8 p.m. Wingate is 7-5 overall and 4-2 in the SAC. The Bears are 3-7 overall and 1-5 in the conference.

The Bulldogs opened conference play by winning four consecutive road games. Wingate's first SAC win was an 80-74 victory at Catawba, with senior guard Ryan Daye scoring 22 points. Sophomore forward Isiah Cureton added 18 points, six rebounds, three blocks and three assists, while freshman forward Lee McCall contributed 12 points and 11 boards.

The Bulldogs followed with an 80-59 win at Tusculum, outscoring the Pioneers 46-28 in the second half. All five starters had at least 12 points, led by Daye's 19 points. Cureton added 18 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists, while freshman Zeriq Lolar had 13 points. Sophomore center Keith Griffin contributed 12 points and 10 rebounds.

Wingate's third conference win came against the Bears in Hickory in late November. Griffin had 13 points and 10 boards in the 70-58 victory, while Daye and McCall added 11 points each for the Bulldogs. Wingate moved to 4-0 in league play with a 74-60 win at Mars Hill. Daye had 18 points on seven-of-10 shooting, while Cureton added 12 points and six rebounds. Lolar also had 12 points, while junior guard Xavier Griffin contributed five points, five rebounds and five assists.

Wingate has won five of the last six games against Lenoir-Rhyne. The 'Dogs have won each of the last five contests in Cuddy Arena. Lenoir-Rhyne's last victory at Wingate came in the 2008-09 season. The Bears enter the game having lost three straight contests. Lenoir-Rhyne's lone conference win came at Anderson in mid-November. The Bears lost to No. 5 Lincoln Memorial 67-55 this past Saturday.

Wingate's current four-game losing streak started with a 12-point loss at No. 13 Mount Olive. The Bulldogs suffered their first conference loss and first home loss against Anderson on Dec. 20. The Trojans shot over 60 percent from the field and from three-point range, the highest field goal percentage Wingate has allowed in the Brian Good era. The 'Dogs followed with a 13-point loss at GRU Augusta, with the Jaguars going nine-for-13 from beyond the arc (69.2 percent). Carson-Newman handed the Bulldogs their second league loss of the season, becoming Wingate's third straight opponent to shoot over 50 percent in an 81-60 loss, the worst SAC defeat for the 'Dogs since the 2003-04 season.

After holding each of their first nine opponents to under 44 percent shooting from the field, the Bulldogs have allowed the opposition to shoot better than 51 percent each of the last three games. The last three opponents have shot a combined 55.4 percent from the field and 23-for-39 from three-point range (58.9 percent). The Bulldogs still rank third in the league in scoring defense, while ranking fifth in field goal percentage defense. Wingate has ranked second in field goal percentage defense two of the last three years, ranking third the other year.

Wingate's balanced attack has seven players averaging over five points per game. Daye leads the way with 14.1 points per game, shooting 39.1 percent from three-point range, knocking down a team-best 25 triples. Cureton is contributing 11.9 points per game, ranking eighth in the SAC with 6.6 rebounds per contest. Xavier Griffin averages 9.6 points per game, ranking sixth in the league with 3.3 assists per contest. Lolar is averaging 7.7 points per game this season, ranking second on the team with 16 threes. Keith Griffin is contributing 7.6 points and 6.3 boards per game, placing him ninth in the conference in rebounding.

Wednesday's game begins a portion of the schedule that sees Wingate play four of five contests at home. The Bulldogs welcome fifth-ranked Lincoln Memorial to Cuddy Arena Saturday at 4 p.m. Wingate travels to Queens the following Wednesday, then hosts Tusculum on Saturday, Jan. 17. That is followed with an 8 p.m. meeting against Catawba Wednesday, Jan. 21 in Cuddy Arena.