Jefferson City, Tenn.----The Wingate University Bulldogs picked up their fourth straight win and third consecutive road victory Saturday afternoon, prevailing 79-77 at Carson-Newman University in South Atlantic Conference men's basketball action. Wingate improves to 7-7 overall and 4-4 in the SAC, while the Eagles fall to 8-6 overall and 5-3 in the conference.

"It's hard to get road wins in our league, so this is a good one," head coach Brian Good says. "I thought we defended really hard. It might be the best job guarding the three-point line this season. We had some great individual efforts on the defensive end. I thought Josh Dominguez was outstanding. He was solid in all areas, but especially rebounding and defensively."

Sophomore guard Mike Baez (Orlando, Fla.) had 21 points and six rebounds to lead the Wingate attack, going seven-of-11 from the field. He has scored in double figures 11 consecutive games, scoring at least 20 in seven of those contests including five of the last six games. Senior center Keith Griffin (Concord, N.C.) added 16 points, nine rebounds and five blocks, while senior forward Josh Dominguez (Matthews, N.C.) had 14 points, five rebounds and four assists. Classmate Isiah Cureton (Waxhaw, N.C.) contributed 10 points, six rebounds and three assists, while senior Anthanee Doyle (Holly Springs, N.C.) had eight points, six assists, four rebounds and three steals.

Sawyer Williams had 20 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Carson-Newman offense. Malik Abraham added 18 points, while Charles Clark contributed 17 points, going eight-of-10 at the free throw line. Shaun Jones chipped in with 11 points and 13 rebounds for the Eagles.

Clark gave the Eagles a 10-7 lead five minutes into the opening half, but buckets from Griffin and Cureton, along with two Cureton free throws gave the Bulldogs a three-point lead. A Baez jumper and two Griffin free throws, along with a Doyle triple helped Wingate take a 27-20 advantage at the 4:55 mark.

A Williams layup got Carson-Newman within six, but threes from Doyle and Baez made it 37-25 with 2:51 remaining. Jones got the Eagles back within seven with a layup, but a pair of Baez free throws extended the lead back to nine. A Jones layup got Carson-Newman within seven at halftime, with the 'Dogs leading 39-32.

A Griffin dunk and Dominguez three-point play put the Wingate lead back in double figures early in the second half. Two free throws from Williams cut the lead to six, but a Baez layup made it 49-40 with 16 minutes to go. Carson-Newman got within four on a Clark layup two minutes later, while a Clark triple tied it at 54 midway through the half. Wingate scored the next seven points, taking a 61-54 lead on a Dominguez triple at the 7:27 mark.

A Williams three-point play and Abraham three got the Eagles within one, but Baez answered with a three-point play to make it 64-40. Two free throws from Abraham tied it with 5:10 remaining. Buckets from Griffin and Cureton put the Bulldogs on top by four, while a Baez layup made it 67-62 with three minutes to go. A Jones bucket got Carson-Newman within two with 58 seconds left, but Cureton answered with a bucket to push the lead back to four, while a Cureton free throw made it 76-71 with 13 seconds to go. The Eagles got back within two with three free throws, but two Doyle free throws pushed the lead back to four with nine seconds left. A Carson-Newman three in the last second made the final margin 79-77.

Wingate shot 38.7 percent from the field, hitting four-of-22 shots from three-point range (18.2 percent). Carson-Newman shot 39 percent from the field, going five-for-18 from beyond the arc (27.8 percent). Wingate held the Eagles to their second-lowest field goal percentage of the year. The Bulldogs held a 44-37 rebounding advantage, with a 17-14 edge in second-chance points. Wingate held the lead for over 31 minutes Saturday and never trailed by more than three.

The Bulldogs return to action Wednesday, beginning a stretch of three out of four home games when they host Catawba at 8 p.m. Wingate welcomes Anderson to town Saturday at 4 p.m.