Men's Basketball | 11/23/2015 2:08:00 PM

Hickory, N.C.----The Wingate University Bulldogs are back in action Tuesday night, opening league play at Lenoir-Rhyne University in South Atlantic Conference men's basketball action. The Bulldogs and Bears are scheduled to tipoff at 6 p.m. at Shuford Gymnasium. Wingate will provide an audio broadcast of the contest, while Lenoir-Rhyne will have live stats and video.

Both teams enter Tuesday's contest with a perfect 3-0 record. The Bulldogs are outscoring teams by a conference-best 21 points per game. Wingate is second in the SAC defensively, allowing 67.3 points per game, while ranking fifth in the league, scoring 88.3 points per contest. The 'Dogs lead the conference in rebounding margin while ranking second in field goal percentage and field goal percentage defense.

Wingate opened the season with an 86-66 victory over Limestone, leading by as many as 30 during the second half. Freshman Mike Baez (Huntersville, N.C.) led six Bulldogs in double figures with 21 points, adding 12 rebounds while junior Isiah Cureton (Waxhaw, N.C.) contributed 16 points, four assists, two steals and two blocks. The 'Dogs defeated Belmont Abbey by 27 points on the second day of the season, outscoring the Crusaders 50-28 in the second half. Cureton had 22 points and six boards, while Baez added 17 points and 10 rebounds. Junior Anthanee Doyle (Holly Springs, N.C.) scored 21 points on eight-of-13 shooting, while senior Xavier Griffin (Marshville, N.C.) went five-for-seven from the field, scoring 14 points.

Wingate moved to 3-0 on the year with last Tuesday's impressive 84-68 victory over sixth-ranked Mount Olive. The Bulldogs outscored the defending region champions 53-29 in the second half, going 15-for-21 from the field in the final 20 minutes (71.4 percent). Cureton piled up 23 points, seven rebounds, five assists, four steals and three blocks to lead the Wingate attack, going 13-for-14 at the free throw line. Junior Josh Dominguez (Matthews, N.C.) added 16 points and six boards, going five-of-seven from the field while sophomore Zeriq Lolar (Orlando, Fla.) contributed 11 points for the Bulldogs. Griffin added 10 points, six boards and four assists.

The Bears are averaging a league-best 98.3 points per contest, scoring over 100 points in two of three games. LRU opened the year with a 101-94 win against 13th-ranked UNC Pembroke. Two-time SAC Player of the Week Keenan Palmore had 36 points, nine assists and eight rebounds, while Reed Lucas added 26 points on eight-of-12 shooting. Rob Noyes had 22 points and eight boards in a 102-93 win against Francis Marion, with Will Perry adding 21 points. Palmore piled up 29 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists in Saturday's 92-83 win against Catawba, while Perry added 18 points.

The Bulldogs and Bears met twice last season, with each team winning on the road. Wingate prevailed 70-58 at Lenoir-Rhyne last November, moving the Bulldogs to 5-0 on the year. Keith Griffin (Concord, N.C.) had 13 points and 10 boards for Wingate, while Lee McCall (Indian Land, S.C.) added 11 points. The Bears prevailed 67-57 in Cuddy Arena, with Lucas scoring 20 points on nine-of-11 shooting for the Bears. The Bulldogs have won five of their last seven against Lenoir-Rhyne.

Cureton leads Wingate and ranks fifth in the SAC with 20.3 points per game, shooting 52.6 percent from the field while adding 5.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.0 steals per contest. Baez averages 13.7 points and 7.3 rebounds per game, good for eighth in the league. Baez is shooting 55.6 percent from the field. Xavier Griffin averages 11.7 points per game on 52 percent shooting, handing out 3.7 assists per contest to go along with 4.3 rebounds per game. Doyle averages 11.3 points per game, going five-for-nine from beyond the arc (55.6 percent).

Palmore leads the SAC with 26.3 points and 9.0 assists per game, ranking third with 9.0 rebounds per contest. Lucas is ninth in the league with 16.3 points per game, while Noyes averages 14.7 points per contest, ranking fifth in the conference with 8.7 boards per game.

After Tuesday's game, the Bulldogs will have another week off before returning to Cuddy Arena to host 13th-ranked UNC Pembroke at 8 p.m. on Dec. 1. Wingate will then play five conference games in 14 days, starting with a trip to Mars Hill. Dec. 5. The 'Dogs host Newberry Dec. 8 and Tusculum Dec. 13 before traveling to fifth-ranked Lincoln Memorial (Dec. 16) and Brevard (Dec. 19). The 'Dogs close out the month at home, hosting No. 23 Augusta on Dec. 31 at 2 p.m.