Box Score Central, S.C. – Southern Wesleyan fell to Belmont Abbey College in Conference Carolina action in a final score of 86-71 on Saturday afternoon.
Four Warriors posted double figures in the loss to the Crusaders. Justice McCullough led the Warriors in scoring with 21 points. He was followed by Darius Sharpe (20), Kevin Stamps (12) and De'Quan Weldon (11). Southern Wesleyan posted a field goal percentage of 40.6% while Belmont Abbey boasted one of 47.2%. There were 16 assists made by Southern Wesleyan. Stamps and Darrian Brown lead the Warriors with four assists apiece in the evening's game. They are followed by McCullough with three.
Justice McCullough posted 14 rebounds. He was followed by Kevin Stamps and Darius Sharpe with six rebounds each. The Warriors made 40 rebounds as a team in the loss compared to the 42 rebounds made by Belmont Abbey. Jeremy Wert had three blocks against the Crusaders. He is followed by Stamps with two.
Two Warriors posted two steals and the Warriors had 17 turnovers in the contest.
Game Vitals
Final: Belmont Abbey 86, Southern Wesleyan 71
Records: Southern Wesleyan (2-14 / CC 1-7), Belmont Abbey (7-8 / CC 3-4)
Coach Wimphrie Says…
"We got off to a good start but couldn't maintain it throughout the contest. Critical mistakes continue to plague us which leads to empty possessions. Belmont Abbey shoots the ball too well for us to give them extra possessions. We played hard but mental lapses caused us to rush which led to mistakes."
How It Happened
The Warriors started the game off strong with a jump shot by Justice McCullough. However, the Crusaders quickly put themselves on the board with a layup by Deion Lane and then, on a three-point jump shot by Jacob Wilson, Belmont Abbey took a 5-3 lead. Back-to-back layups by Kevin Stamps allowed the Warriors to come to two behind the Crusaders and made the score 9-7 Belmont Abbey lead. The Warriors were not going to go down lightly as Jeremy Wert shot a 3-point jump shot to bring the Warriors to one behind the Crusaders and then Stamps made a jump shot, putting the Warriors on top 19-17. However, Belmont Abbey made a layup to tie the game and then pulled ahead on a layup by Nick Meyers. Darius Sharpe brought the Warriors to three behind the Crusaders on a three-point jump shot making the score 33-30. Despite the Warriors' fight, Belmont Abbey was leading 46-35 at half-time.
Belmont Abbey scored first in the second half, however, the Warriors countered on a 3-point jump shot by Darius Sharpe to make the score 49-35. A three point jump shot by Belmont Abbey's Deion Lane gave the Crusaders a 14-point lead over the Southern Wesleyan Warriors. De'Quan Weldon made a three point jump shot to bring the Warriors to within ten points of the Crusaders with a score of 55-45, but Belmont Abbey quickly lengthened their lead to 65-54 on a shots by Deion Lane and Gunnar Hardarson. Baskets by Weldon and Kevin Stamps brought the score to 79-67 with three minutes left of action in the game, however, the Crusaders held the Warriors back and took the game 86-71.
What's Next
The Warriors will travel to King University on Monday, January 16 to take on the Tornado at 7:30 p.m. They will then return home for the next four games to compete against North Greenville, Pfeiffer, Mount Olive and Barton.
