CLEVELAND, Tenn. –A strong defensive showing in the second half helped guide the Lee University men's basketball team past Shorter University on Saturday afternoon. The 75-61 victory gave the Flames their eighth straight win and kept them in second place in the Gulf South Conference standings. Lee (17-5, 14-5) is in front of the University of Alabama in Huntsville by one game and the University of West Alabama by two games.
The Flames started slow on the offensive end in the first half, only managing to score nine points in the first five minutes. Shorter extended their lead to 19-14 midway through the first period before JJ Barnes got the Flames into a little bit of rhythm as he scored seven points to lead the team.
The Flames took the lead and ran it up to seven points in the first half, but Shorter kept it close and only trailed 37-33 at halftime. The second half saw the Flames dial up the offense and managed to pull ahead. Willie Walton had an excellent second half going three-for-three from long range on his way to 14 points. He also added a game best eight rebounds.
Three other Flames scored in double figures as Barnes had a game high 15 points while Tim Vaughn added 13 and Noah Boler-Kyle had 12. Beyuan Hendricks had nine points which is only the fourth time this season he hasn't scored in double-digits.
As a team, Lee outrebounded Shorter 35-26 and outscored the Hawks 34-20 in the painted area.
Lee will return home next week for a three game home stand. The Flames will take on Mississippi College on Thursday, February 15 at 7:30 PM at Walker Arena.
Coach Bubba Smith's Thoughts:
"Proud of the road win. It's always a tough game at Shorter. I thought the start of the second half was really good. Three straight stop and three really good offensive possessions that led to points."
"It was a really good defensive effort, especially in the second. Clay got going early and JJ did a great job for the next 30 minutes and held him to 2 points the rest of the game."
"I thought we got a good offensive rhythm in the second half and Beyuan and JJ were really good in the ballscreen."
