Wingate, N.C.----The Wingate University Bulldogs outscored visiting Francis Marion University 64-41 in the second half Wednesday afternoon, erasing a 10-point halftime deficit to prevail 107-94 in NCAA Division II men's basketball action in Cuddy Arena. The Bulldogs improve to 3-1 overall, while the Patriots fall to 2-4 on the season.

KEY STATS

- Wingate shot 55 percent from the field, going eight-for-21 from three-point range (38 percent)
- The 'Dogs shot 58 percent in the second half, knocking down five-of-seven shots from deep
- FMU shot 46 percent from the field, going 11-for-23 from beyond the arc (48 percent)
- The Bulldogs knocked down 27-of-34 free throws, going 17-for-20 in the second half
- The Patriots were 19-for-29 from the line
- Each team had 36 rebounds; Wingate held an 18-14 edge in second-chance points
- The 'Dogs outscored Francis Marion 50-40 in the paint
- Wingate scored 19 points off 16 FMU turnovers, registering seven steals
- The Bulldogs had four of the five blocks in the contest
- First time the 'Dogs have hit the century mark this season
- 107 points are the most since scoring 107 against Mars Hill in January of 2023

KEY BULLDOGS

- Josh Massey had 29 points, eight rebounds, two blocks and two steals
- He went eight-for-13 from the field and 10-for-12 at the line, notching multiple blocks for the third time in four games this season
- Donell Nixon had 21 points, six assists, four rebounds and a steal
- He went seven-for-nine from the field and three-for-four from deep, hitting the 20-point mark for the fourth time in four games this season
- Vontrez Roberts had 17 points and four boards, going seven-for-11 from the field
- Aaron Hall had 11 points, eight rebounds and three assists, going five-for-eight from the field
- Taylor Bell added 10 points, four boards and three assists on three-of-five shooting
- Kendall Taylor contributed nine points, four boards, four assists and three steals
- Jordan Miller had seven points, two rebounds and two assists

FIRST HALF

- Roberts had six early points to help the 'Dogs get out to a 10-8 lead
- Massey's triple with 14 minutes to go made it 14-9
- Two free throws and a layup from Massey stretched the lead to six at the 12:47 mark
- A Horace Jacques three with eight minutes left cut the lead to one
- Nixon answered with a jumper to make it 29-26 at the 7:50 mark
- FMU answered with a 14-3 run, taking a 43-32 lead on a Tionne Rollins triple with 3:42 to go
- Two free throws and a three from Nixon pulled Wingate within eight
- A triple and layup from Bryce Beamer made it 51-41 with a minute left
- Hall's layup cut the lead to eight, but a Marlow Gilmore putback at the buzzer made it 53-43

SECOND HALF

- Wingate scored 13 of the first 15 points in the second half to take the lead less than four minutes in
- Massey and Roberts had four points each in the flurry with Nixon adding a three
- A Jacques layup at the 15:35 mark put the Patriots back on top 59-56
- The 'Dogs went on a 9-0 run, getting four points from Taylor and three from Massey to go on top 67-60
- Miller buried a triple with 12 minutes to go to extend the lead to eight
- Nixon's three with nine minutes left gave Wingate an 81-72 advantage
- Beamer's layup a minute later cut the lead to five
- Hall scored six straight points, starting with a dunk to push the lead to 12 at 88-76
- A Jacques triple with four minutes to go cut the lead to eight
- Two Massey free throws and a three, along with a Nixon layup made it 97-84 at the 3:10 mark
- Francis Marion got no closer than nine the rest of the way

UP NEXT

- Wingate is back in action Saturday, opening SAC play at UVA Wise at 4 p.m.