WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Away from home for the second time in four days, the Lander men's basketball team earned its first road win of the season over Winston-Salem State on Tuesday evening by a 78-66 margin.
The Bearcats are back to .500 at 3-3 with the victory while the Rams fell to 0-4.
Noah Dunn's 21 points led the way for Lander for the second consecutive outing on an efficient 8-of-15 shooting performance from the floor; Dunn also pulled down five rebounds.
Dominic Stanford also had a hot hand and made 6 of 11 shots, including 5 of 8 from downtown while leading the team with six rebounds.
Torrin Andrews (13 points) and
Inady Legiste (10) joined them in double figures to give the Blue and Gold four such players. Andrews was an efficient 5 of 8 from the field and made 3 of 5 3s in addition to wreaking havoc defensively with four steals.
The game was tight early until the Bearcats went on a 5-0 run out of the first media timeout to gain some breathing room at 15-9 with 13:06 left in the first half. They eventually pushed that advantage to 27-18 five minutes later when
Terry Leonard Jr. nailed a fastbreak 3.
Lander carried a 40-33 lead into halftime.
Stanford and Andrews combined on an 8-0 run after the intermission to give the Bearcats a 15-point lead in short order to begin the closing half.
The lead ballooned to a game-high 22 points (57-35) with 13:50 left following another Stanford long-range make, and the result was never in doubt from there.
Lander outrebounded Winston-Salem State 31-28 and caused 15 Ram turnovers and converted them into 22 points. The Bearcats also enjoyed a 26-20 margin in points in the paint while receiving 27 points from the bench.
The Bearcats have a week off before returning to Finis Horne Arena on Tuesday, Dec. 3 in a 7 p.m. tip against Converse.
