Harrogate, Tenn.----The seventh-seeded Lenoir-Rhyne University Bears knocked off third-seeded Wingate University 76-69 in the NCAA Southeast Regional semifinals Sunday evening. Lenoir-Rhyne improves to 21-9 overall, advancing to Tuesday night's regional championship game. Wingate ends its season at 23-10.
The Bulldogs were making their 10th NCAA Tournament appearance in program history. Wingate has won at least one NCAA Tournament contest for the fifth straight time, thanks to Saturday's 89-88 overtime win against Montevallo. The 23 wins are the most since the 2007-08 season, while the 16 SAC victories are a program record.
SAC Player off the Year
Keenan Palmore led the LRU attack, scoring 20 of his 22 points in the second half, adding 11 rebounds and three assists.
Reed Lucas added 14 points, while
Will Perry and
Rob Noyes contributed 12 points each.
JaQues Chambers added 10 points for the Bears.
Junior center
Keith Griffin (Concord, N.C.) piled up 19 points and nine rebounds to lead the Wingate attack, adding a pair of blocks. Freshman
Mike Baez (Huntersville, N.C.) contributed 13 points and seven rebounds, while sophomore
Zeriq Lolar (Orlando, Fla.) added eight points for the Bulldogs. Junior forward
Isiah Cureton (Waxhaw, N.C.) had six points, seven rebounds, three steals and two assists, while senior
Xavier Griffin (Marshville, N.C.) added six points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals.
The first half stayed tight throughout, featuring 15 lead changes. A Baez jumper gave the Bulldogs an 11-7 lead six minutes into the first half. Threes from Lucas and Perry gave the Bears a one-point advantage two minutes later. A pair of Lolar free throws, along with a
Kerigan Farley (Hickory, N.C.) layup put the 'Dogs back on top at the 9:10 mark.
A Cureton dunk and Keith Griffin layup gave Wingate a 25-22 lead, but a pair of Noyes buckets put LRU on top 28-27. A Cureton layup put the 'Dogs back on top, while two Lolar free throws helped Wingate take a 31-30 halftime lead.
A three from Chambers four minutes into the second half gave Lenoir-Rhyne a 40-35 lead. A Lolar jumper and Baez dunk got Wingate within one, but four consecutive Palmore buckets put the Bears on top 48-41. A Keith Griffin bucket got the Bulldogs within six at the midway point of the second half. Buckets from Noyes and Lucas put Lenoir-Rhyne on top by 10 at the 7:52 mark.
Buckets from Keith Griffin and Farley cut the lead back to six, but buckets from Lucas and Perry pushed the LRU lead back to double figures with 5:22 to go. Free throws from Cureton and Baez got the Bulldogs within seven with three minutes remaining, while a Cureton free throw with two minutes left made it 66-60. Two more Palmore buckets pushed the LRU lead back to 10 with a minute remaining. Wingate got the lead down to five on a Farley bucket with 23 seconds to go, but could get no closer.
Lenoir-Rhyne shot 49 percent from the field, hitting six-of-15 shots from three-point range (40 percent). LRU went 16-for-16 from the field in the second half (61.5 percent). Wingate shot 43.4 percent from the field, knocking down two-of-11 shots from beyond the arc (18.2 percent). The Bears out-rebounded the Bulldogs 36-32, holding a 14-2 advantage in second-chance points. Each team scored 38 points in the paint.
Lenoir-Rhyne will face the winner of Sunday night's Queens vs. Lincoln Memorial game in Tuesday regional championship contest.
