College Men’s Basketball Final – N.C. Wesleyan 75, Guilford 66

ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. – Isaiah Alston scored eight of his team-high 11 points in the second half of North Carolina Wesleyan’s 75-66 men’s basketball win over visiting Guilford College Monday afternoon.

The Batting Bishops (5-4) overcame an 11-point deficit and outscored the Quakers (4-4), 48-29, in the second half. Guilford led, 37-27, at halftime thanks to 10 of Justen Best’s (Chapel Hill, N.C./East Chapel Hill (Tennessee Temple)) game-high 15 points. Trevor Mayo’s (Greensboro, N.C./Greensboro Day) basket with 15:39 left in regulation opened a 48-37 Guilford advantage before North Carolina Wesleyan answered with a 24-6 run midway through the second half. Chris Sause netted six of his nine points during the outburst. His layup with 7:42 left capped the run and opened a 61-54 Bishops’ edge. The hosts shot over 51 percent from the floor and forced 11 Guilford turnovers in the final 20 minutes.

The Quakers (4-4) battled back to tie the game at 61-61 with 4:30 remaining on two Jarrod Rogers (Archdale, N.C./Trinity) free throws. Guilford was within four after a Mayo basket with 62 seconds left. Alston answered with a three-pointer and delivered a steal that led to a Marcus Williams layup and a 72-63 Bishops’ edge with 30 seconds remaining.

Brandon Brown and John Edwards joined Alston with a team-best 11 points in a balanced scoring effort. Edwards had a team-high five rebounds and two steals. North Carolina Wesleyan capitalized on 19 Guilford turnovers, which led to 19 Bishops’ points, and turned the ball over only 12 times.

Guilford’s Best made seven-of-nine shots from the floor, including a three-pointer, for his game-high 15 points. Mayo finished with 11 points, five boards, two blocks and two steals in 30 active minutes. Alston Thompson (Durham, N.C./Durham Academy) contributed 10 points and a game-best seven rebounds. John Bryant added nine points and five rebounds for Guilford. The Quakers enjoyed a 44-35 rebounding advantage and cashed 17 offensive boards into 17 points.

Coach Tom Palombo’s club hosts the Guilford College Classic December 29-30 in the Ragan-Brown Field House. Guilford hosts the University of Pittsburgh-Greensburg December 29 at 7:00 p.m. and Dickinson College December 30 at 7:00 p.m. Greensboro College is the tournament’s fourth team and plays at 5:00 p.m. on both days.

Guilford vs N.C. Wesleyan
12/14/15 3:00 pm at Rocky Mount, NC – Everett Gym
At Rocky Mount, NC – Everett Gym

N.C. WESLEYAN 75
GUILFORD 66

GUILFORD (4-4): BEST, Justen 7-9 0-0 15; MAYO, Trevor 5-11 0-0 11; THOMPSON, Alston 5-13 0-0 10; BRYANT, John 3-6 3-4 9; LONG, Carson 3-5 0-0 6; METZ, AJ 2-6 0-0 5; HYATT, Trever 2-8 0-0 5; HOUSTON, Zachary 1-6 0-1 3; ROGERS, Jarrod 0-2 2-2 2; WOODRUFF, Daniel 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 28-66 5-7 66.

N.C. WESLEYAN (5-4): Isaiah Alston 4-9 0-0 11; John Edwards 4-7 2-4 11; Brandon Brown 3-7 2-2 11; Chris Sause 4-7 1-2 9; Shannon Huff 4-8 1-2 9; Devontae Williams 4-9 0-0 8; Marcus Williams 1-4 5-6 7; D.J. Weaver 2-8 0-0 5; Robert Wilson 1-3 0-0 2; Adrian Moore 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 28-64 11-16 75.

Guilford......................   37   29  -   66
N.C. Wesleyan.................   27   48  -   75

3-point goals–Guilford 5-13 (HYATT, Trever 1-4; METZ, AJ 1-2; MAYO, Trevor 1-1; HOUSTON, Zachary 1-2; BEST, Justen 1-3; ROGERS, Jarrod 0-1), N.C. Wesleyan 8-23 (Brandon Brown 3-6; Isaiah Alston 3-8; John Edwards 1-2; D.J. Weaver 1-5; Marcus Williams 0-1; Adrian Moore 0-1).
Fouled out–Guilford-None, N.C. Wesleyan-None.
Rebounds–Guilford 44 (THOMPSON, Alston 7; HOUSTON, Zachary 7), N.C. Wesleyan 35 (John Edwards 5).
Assists–Guilford 14 (BEST, Justen 3; ROGERS, Jarrod 3; HOUSTON, Zachary 3), N.C. Wesleyan 19 (Marcus Williams 4; D.J. Weaver 4).
Total fouls–Guilford 16, N.C. Wesleyan 14.
Technical fouls–Guilford-None, N.C. Wesleyan-None.
A-195

Nonconference game