CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The 25th-ranked Queens University of Charlotte men's basketball team (21-6, 16-5 SAC) overcame an 11-point first-half deficit to defeat Wingate University (12-15, 8-13 SAC), 86-73, on Wednesday night at the Levine Center.
Jamari Smith led the Royals with 16 points and 11 rebounds, to post his third career double-double as Queens extended its winning streak to seven games and earned its eighth-straight win over its local rival.
Kenny Dye followed with 15,
Jachai Taylor added 12, and
Jermaine Patterson tallied 10 points.
Wingate grabbed an early lead after a 3-pointer by Frankie Johnson capped an opening 9-2 run with 17:12 to go in the half. A few minutes later, a 3-pointer by Francis Sio secured the Bulldogs' largest lead of 11 points, 19-8, with 13:45 remaining in the first.
However, back-to-back buckets by
Gavin Rains, followed by a layup by
Peanut Cunningham brought the Royals within two, 21-19, with 9:50 left in the half.
Jarren Cottingham's fourth 3-pointer of the game briefly opened up the Wingate lead again, 34-29, with just 4:30 until halftime. But Queens pushed back again to tie the game at 36 with 3:13 to go and secured its first lead, 39-37, after a 3-pointer by Dye with just 2:40 remaining.
Wingate answered with a jumper by Sio to tie it again at 39 before the Royals went on a 5-0 run capped by a Dye layup right before the halftime buzzer that gave Queens 44-39 lead at the break, despite trailing for the opening 16:44 of the game.
To open the second, Taylor and
Van Turner Jr. hit consecutive 3's that sparked an 8-0 run and gave the Royals a 52-39 lead with 18:24 to play. Queens extended its lead to its largest, 69-49, with 11:19 remaining on a fastbreak score by Cunningham.
Queens shot 54.2 percent from the field, 42.9 percent from the 3-point line (9-21), and 72.2 percent at the free-throw line (13-18). The Royals outscored the Bulldogs in the paint, 40-18.
Wingate shot 36.8 percent from the field, 40 percent from distance (12-30), and 63.3 percent at the free-throw line (19-30). Cottingham led all scorers with 22 points. Sio followed with 18 and Quantra added eight points with nine rebounds.
The Royals conclude the regular season on Saturday at Mars Hill University (12-15, 10-11 SAC). Opening tipoff is scheduled for 4 p.m. Live play-by-play coverage will be available on the
Queens Sports Network.