Box Score GREENVILLE, S.C. – The 20th ranked Queens University of Charlotte men's basketball fell to the Wingate Bulldogs in the semifinal round of the South Atlantic Conference Tournament by the score of 77-68 on Saturday, March 5th. Tonight's defeat gives the Royals their fourth loss in their last five games and puts their overall record at 24-6 on the season.
 
The Royals were led offensively by Todd Withers scored a career-high 22 points as he connected on 6-of-13 three pointers in the game. Withers would only attempt one two-point shot tonight and would gather four rebounds, two assists, and two steals in the game. Daniel Camps was the only other Royal to hit double figure points as he added 13 points in the game, seven of which came courtesy of the free throw line.
 
Queens was only able to connect on 38.6 percent of their shots in the game, their second lowest shooting percentage of the season. On the other side of the court, Wingate had a hard time missing their shots as they shot 49.1 percent from the field and were 12-of-21 from three-point range. The Royals were able to force Wingate into 21 turnovers that resulted in 23 points, but 15 of those turnovers took place in the first half.
 
The Royals jumped out of the gate strong as they quickly built a 14-5 lead in the first five minutes of the game. Withers knocked down two three pointers, both assisted by Camps who also added in a bucket during the run. Wingate would have a run up their sleeve as well as they went on a 20-4 scoring streak that would give them a 25-18 lead with 7:37 to play in the first half. The Bulldogs' Anthanee Doyle knocked down two straight three pointers and Keith Griffin contributed four points for Wingate during the run. Queens would use the rest of the first half to claw away at the Bulldogs lead, using an 8-2 run sparked by a steal by Marquis Rankin and a fast break dunk by Withers. The run would eventually help the Royals regain the lead as they took a 33-32 advantage over Wingate with 2:27 to play in the first half. Neither team would hit a field goal for the remainder of the half, as Wingate would knock down two free throws giving them a 34-33 lead over the Royals at the break.
 
The second half of the game would be much more of a back and forth battle at the start as Kendall Jones' three pointer would make tie the game at 43 points apiece with 13:59 to play in the second half. Three minutes later, the game would still be tied, this time 46-46, until Wingate hit on three straight three pointers, giving them a nine point, 55-46 lead with 8:34 remaining on the game clock. Camps would hit a layup to stop the Royals shooting drought, but the Bulldogs would add three more buckets in a row, two more from beyond the arc, giving them a 63-48 lead with just 6:14 to play in the second half. Queens would have an answer though as Jacoby Davis' step back jumper with 2:57 on the clock that would complete a 10-2 run that would cut the deficit to seven points and make the score 65-58. Wingate would then connect on two three pointers in a row, giving them a 13 point, 71-58 lead with just over two minutes to play in the game. Queens was able to connect on two Withers three pointers as well as a Camps dunk and a Rankin layup, but Wingate would make their free throws down the stretch, knocking the Royals out of the tournament by the final score of 77-68.
 
Wingate was able to spread the ball around quite well in the game as they had six players to score double figure points led by 16 from Mike Baez. Isiah Cureton added 13 points, six rebounds, and four assists in the game for the Bulldogs.
 
The Royals now await the NCAA Tournament selection show that will take place on Sunday, March 6th, at 10:30 p.m. to decide their postseason fate.