Mars Hill, N.C.----Mars Hill University's Bennett Wilson knocked down a three with one second remaining Saturday afternoon, giving the Lions a 90-88 victory over visiting Wingate University in South Atlantic Conference men's basketball action. Mars Hill improves to 3-4 overall and 1-1 in the SAC, while the Bulldogs fall to 2-6 overall and 1-3 in the conference. This marks the second time this week that a three in the final seconds cost the Bulldogs, who have lost five of their six games by a combined 15 points.

Vernon Jackson had 15 points to lead the Mars Hill attack. Wilson had 13 points, while Valentin Bauer and Just Hartfield contributed 12 points apiece. Dotson Griffin had 10 points for the Lions, while Luke Van-Rijn added nine points.

Senior center Keith Griffin (Concord, N.C.) had 19 points and eight rebounds to lead the Wingate attack, going seven-of-nine from the field. Senior forward Josh Dominguez (Matthews, N.C.) also had 19 points, adding four rebounds and four assists while senior guard Anthanee Doyle (Holly Springs, N.C.) contributed 17 points, going four-for-four from three-point range. Sophomore guard Mike Baez (Orlando, Fla.) contributed 16 points and eight rebounds for the Bulldogs.

Wingate raced out to a 10-0 lead, getting a pair of early threes from Doyle. A Griffin bucket pushed the lead to 12 at the 16:14 mark, but a three-point play from Hartfield got the Lions within four with 14:33 left in the half. Cody Hylton knocked down a three at the midway point of the half to get Mars Hill within a point at 26-25. Buckets from Doyle and Griffin stretched the Wingate lead back to five, while a Doyle triple and Jeremy Williams (Monroe, N.C.) layup made it 45-37 at the 3:37 mark. A Neico Robinson (Easley, S.C.) layup in the final seconds gave the Bulldogs a 49-40 halftime lead.

A triple from Bauer three minutes into the second half got the Lions back within two, but a Griffin bucket and two Dominguez free throws made it 59-51 at the 14:18 mark. Baez buried a three with 11:39 remaining to push the advantage to 10 at 67-57, but back-to-back buckets from Makyle Wilkerson cut the lead in half. Dominguez answered with two free throws and a layup to make it 74-65 with eight minutes to go.

A Bauer three and Hartfield layup cut the lead to two, while a dunk from Jackson got MHU within a point at 81-80 with 3:46 remaining. Baez pushed the lead back to three with a pair of free throws, but Jackson's three-point play tied the game for the first time with 2:11 to go. A Dominguez layup gave Wingate a three-point lead, but a Jackson jumper and Hartfield layup gave the Lions their first lead with 1:15 remaining. After teams traded empty possessions, Griffin was fouled after an offensive rebound, knocking down two free throws to give Wingate an 87-86 lead with 13 seconds remaining. Mars Hill called a timeout with three seconds left, with Wilson knocking down the game-winner in the final second.

Mars Hill shot 51.4 percent from the field, hitting nine-of-24 shots from three-point range (37 percent). Wingate shot 53.4 percent from the field, going six-of-14 from beyond the arc (43 percent). The Bulldogs dominated the glass, holding a 44-24 rebounding advantage and 15-12 edge in second chance points. Mars Hill converted 18 Wingate turnovers into 20 points. Wingate held the lead for over 38 minutes Saturday afternoon.

The Bulldogs are back in action Monday night, playing just their second home game of the year against Lander at 7 p.m.