SALISBURY, N.C. – Kenny Dye scored a season-high 25 points to pace five Royals in double figures as the Queens University of Charlotte men's basketball team (19-6, 14-5 SAC) topped Catawba College (18-7, 13-6 SAC), 94-84, on Wednesday night at Goodman Gymnasium. Daniel Carr followed with 23 points as Queens earned its 16th-straight win over its conference rival, earned its fifth-straight win overall, and captured sole possession of second place in the South Atlantic Conference standings.
Gavin Rains added 16 points with seven rebounds as Jachai Taylor and Jamari Smith each scored 12 points.
Queens grabbed an early 13-4 lead after Taylor contributed five points to a 9-0 run that was capped by a Rains lay-in with 15:05 left in the first half. Catawba fought back and a jumper by Marcell Haskett brought the Indians back within two, 19-17, with 11:34 until the break.
Shortly after, the Royals took control of the first half, 39-29, after hitting three 3-pointers in under two minutes with 4:50 to play in the half. Queens grabbed its largest lead of the game, 47-31, when Dye turned a pair of Catawba turnovers into back-to-back fastbreak floaters with 3:02 remaining in the first. The Indians pinched the 16-point deficit to 10, 49-39, on a layup by Daquan Lilly right before the halftime buzzer.
Catawba's momentum continued into the second half as a three-point play by Lilly pulled the Indians back within two scores, 51-45, with 18:48 to go. A fast-break 3-pointer by Van Turner Jr., however, stretched the Royals' lead to 58-51 with 16:49 remaining.
The Indians erased the deficit after a layup by Lilly tied the game at 58 with 14:20 left to play. With 12:21 left, a 3-pointer by Devin Cooper put Catawba ahead, 65-64, for the first time since a 2-0 lead to start the game.
Queens pushed back in front, 66-65, with 12:06 remaining, and, moments later, with 10:10 left, a layup by Taylor again gave the Royals a six-point lead, 72-66.
Catawba again cut the deficit to a lone point, 74-73, on a steal and layup by Haskett with 6:31 to play.
After a 3-pointer by Cooper pulled the Indians within four, 84-80, with 3:26 left, Queens held Catawba without a field goal for the remainder of the game, closing on a 10-2 run to seal the victory.
Queens shot 56.1 percent from the field, 42.1 percent from 3-point range (8-19) and 88 percent at the free-throw line (22-25). The Royals scored 29 points off 20 Indians turnovers.
Catawba shot 54.4 percent from the field, 45.8 percent from 3-point range (11-24), and 68.8 percent (11-16) at the free-throw line.
Four Indians reached double digits as Cooper led with 21, Haskett scored 19, and Ace Carter scored 12. Lilly also scored 12 and recorded six rebounds.
The Royals return to action on Saturday against Carson-Newman University (9-16, 6-13 SAC) on Senior Day at the Levine Center. Opening tipoff is scheduled for 4 p.m. Live play-by-play coverage will be available on the Queens Sports Network.
