Wingate, N.C.----The Wingate University Bulldogs cut a 17-point second half deficit to three in the final minutes, but were unable to complete the comeback, falling 67-57 to the visiting Lenoir-Rhyne University Bears in South Atlantic Conference men's basketball action Wednesday night in Cuddy Arena. The Bears improve to 4-7 overall and 2-5 in the SAC, while Wingate drops its fifth straight, falling to 7-6 overall and 4-3 in the conference.

Reed Lucas led the LRU attack with 20 points, going nine-for-11 from the field while knocking down both shots from beyond the arc. Will Perry added 16 points, hitting eight-of-11 free throws on the night, while Rob Noyes had 11 points and 14 rebounds for the Bears. Darrion Evans contributed nine points and three boards.

Senior guard Ryan Daye (Burlington, N.C.) had 18 points to lead the Wingate attack. Sophomores Josh Dominguez (Matthews, N.C.) and Keith Griffin (Concord, N.C.) had seven points each, while Griffin added nine rebounds and four blocked shots.

A Perry jumper gave the Bears a 13-7 lead eight minutes into the opening half. Wingate scored the next nine points to take a 16-13 advantage at the 8:52 mark. Sophomore forward Isiah Cureton (Waxhaw, N.C.) opened the spurt with a triple, while sophomore guard Anthanee Doyle (Holly Springs, N.C.) scored the next five points to put Wingate on top. Three Perry free throws and a Perry layup put LRU back on top by four. The Bears would finish the half on a 17-4 run to take a 37-23 lead into halftime. Lucas had five points in the flurry, while Noyes added four points.

A triple from Evans gave Lenoir-Rhyne a 42-25 lead three minutes into the second half. A three from Daye cut the lead to 12 at the 15:10 mark, but Lucas answered with a triple to push the lead back to 15. A Perry layup made it 53-36 with 10:13 remaining. The Bulldogs scored the next five points, cutting the lead to 12 on a Daye layup at the 8:21 mark.

A Daye jumper, followed by two free throws from junior guard Xavier Griffin (Marshville, N.C.) cut the lead to eight with four minutes remaining. A pair of Dominguez free throws made it 60-55 at the 2:47 mark, while two Keith Griffin free throws got the Bulldogs to within three with 1:40 to go. Lucas answered with a layup, while two free throws from Noyes made it 64-57 with 31 seconds remaining. LRU added three more free throws in the final 22 seconds to make the final margin 67-57.

Lenoir-Rhyne shot 51.2 percent from the field, becoming the fourth straight Wingate opponent to shoot over 50 percent. The Bears knocked down five-of-nine threes on the evening (55.6 percent). The Bulldogs shot 25 percent from the field, hitting four-of-23 shots from beyond the arc (17.4 percent). It is a season low for points, field goal percentage and field goals made. Wingate held a 35-33 rebounding advantage and a 19-11 edge in second chance points.

Wingate is back in action Saturday, hosting fourth-ranked Lincoln Memorial at 4 p.m.