Greeneville, Tenn.----The Tusculum University Pioneers outscored visiting Wingate University 33-25 in the second half Wednesday afternoon, prevailing 65-60 in South Atlantic Conference men's basketball action. Tusculum improves to 8-4 overall and 8-2 in the SAC, while the Bulldogs fall to 11-4 overall and 7-4 in league play.

KEY STATS

- Tusculum shot 40 percent from the field; Wingate shot 35 percent
- The 'Dogs hit seven-of-31 threes; the Pioneers went six-for-28 from deep
- Tusculum held a 40-37 rebounding advantage and 15-9 edge in second-chance points
- Each team had five steals; the Pioneers had all five blocked shots
- Tusculum scored 15 points off12 WU turnovers
- The contest featured eight ties and 11 lead changes
- The Bulldogs held the lead for over 20 minutes, leading by as many as 11 in the first half

KEY BULLDOGS

- Jarren Cottingham had 18 points, three rebounds, three steals and an assist
- Destin Clark had 11 points and 10 rebounds for his second straight double-double
- Sean Elmore added 11 points and six boards
- Donell Nixon contributed eight points, four assists and three rebounds

FIRST HALF

- Nixon's triple five minutes in gave the 'Dogs a 9-7 lead
- Cottingham's layup pushed the lead to four
- An Inady Legiste bucket at the 9:50 mark tied it at 15
- WU went on an 11-0 run to take its biggest lead of the game
- Elmore, Clark and Nixon started the spurt with buckets
- Cottingham's three at the 4:32 mark capped it, making it 29-18
- Tusculum closed the half on a 6-0 run, making it 35-32 at halftime on a William Vedder three-point play

SECOND HALF

- A 9-0 Pioneer run put the hosts on top 41-37 on a Justin Mitchell bucket three minutes in
- An Elmore three and Cottingham layup put Wingate back on top by one
- Lejiste's jumper at the 10:26 mark put the Pioneers on top 51-44
- Cottingham's three a minute later pulled Wingate back within two
- An Elmore three with six minutes remaining tied it at 54
- Nixon knocked down a triple with 3:38 to go to give the 'Dogs a 59-58 lead
- Vedder answered with a three-point play to give Tusculum a 61-59 advantage
- Clark's free throw at the 1:58 mark pulled the Bulldogs back within a point
- Gibson knocked down two free throws with a minute left to push the lead to three
- Two more Gibson free throws with 19 seconds left iced the game for the Pioneers

UP NEXT

- Wingate's third straight road game is next Wednesday, traveling to Coker at 7:30 p.m.
- The 'Dogs wrapup the road trip next Saturday afternoon at Anderson
- WU returns home Jan. 19, hosting Lenoir-Rhyne at 7:30 p.m.