Anderson, S.C.----Trailing by a point in the final seconds, Josh Massey knocked down a deep jumper as the buzzer sounded, giving Wingate University a thrilling 76-75 victory at Anderson University in South Atlantic Conference men's basketball action Wednesday night. Wingate moves to 13-3 overall and 8-0 in the SAC, while the Trojans fall to 7-8 overall and 2-5 in league play. The Bulldogs have now won nine straight on the season. The 8-0 SAC start is now the best start in program history.

KEY STATS

- Anderson shot 49 percent from the field, going eight-for-24 from three-point range (33 percent)
- Wingate shot 43 percent from the field, connecting on three-of-15 from deep (20 percent)
- The Bulldogs went 23-for-29 at the free throw line; the Trojans were 11-for-17
- The 'Dogs held a 36-30 rebounding advantage and 8-0 edge in second-chance points
- Wingate scored seven points off nine AU turnovers; the 'Dogs had just eight turnovers
- The contest featured eight ties and seven lead changes; Anderson led by as many as 15

KEY BULLDOGS

- Massey had 27 points and five rebounds, going 11-for-19 from the field
- Kendall Taylor added 23 points and seven boards, going seven-for-13 from the field and eight-for-11 at the line
- Vontrez Roberts had 12 points and four rebounds, going six-for-six at the line
- Donell Nixon contributed 10 points and seven assists, going five-for-five at the line
- Taylor Bell added four points and six rebounds

FIRST HALF

- A Bell layup and Massey jumper gave Wingate a 9-6 lead five minutes in
- Austin Webb cut the lead to one with a layup, but buckets from Roberts and Massey made it 15-12
- AU scored the next six, taking an 18-15 advantage on Webb's layup
- Three Nixon free throws tied it at 18
- A Luke Denbow triple capped a 6-0 run to give the Trojans a 27-20 advantage
- Garrett Denbow pushed the lead to nine with 5:21 remaining
- Webb's layup a minute later made it 35-24
- Buckets from Massey and Bell pulled the 'Dogs back within seven at the 3:40 mark
- Anderson scored the next eight, taking a 43-28 lead with 2:19 to go
- Four free throws from Taylor and Roberts cut the lead to 11 heading to halftime

SECOND HALF

- Cole Middleton's dunk gave Anderson a 45-32 lead in the opening minute
- Free throws from Taylor and Roberts cut the lead to nine a minute later
- Andre Wright's free throw put the Trojans on top 46-36
- Wingate scored the next eight, getting five points from Taylor and a Massey triple to cut it to two
- A Taylor layup and Roberts jumper with 14:24 remaining gave the 'Dogs a 48-47 lead
- Nixon buried a triple a minute later to extend the lead to four
- Anderson scored the next six, taking a 55-53 lead on Webb's triple at the 10:31 mark
- Taylor's layup tied it at 57 a minute later
- The Trojans scored 12 of the next 15, taking a 69-60 lead on Middleton's layup with 5:43 to go
- Two free throws and a layup from Massey cut the lead to four, but a Middleton bucket made it 74-68
- Taylor answered with a three at the 2:31 mark to cut the lead in half
- Massey's layup with 1:16 remaining tied it at 74
- Garrett Denbow's free throw with 53 seconds left gave Anderson a one-point lead
- Wingate turned it over on the next possession, but the Trojans could not take advantage
- Tyrese Barbour rebounded a missed three from Garrett Denbow with five seconds left
- The 'Dogs called a timeout and inbounded the ball from half court with 3.6 seconds to go
- Nixon got the inbounds pass and found Massey on the left wing
- He drained the shot with his toe on the three-point line to give Wingate the thrilling victory

UP NEXT

- Wingate is back in action Saturday, hosting Carson-Newman at 4 p.m.