TIGERVILLE, S.C. – The King University men's basketball team earned a Conference Carolinas victory at North Greenville University on Tuesday night. The Tornado received a 30-point outburst from
Michael Mays and used a 9-0 in the middle of the second half to gain separation and take the contest 87-78.
THE BASICS
FINAL: King 87, North Greenville 78
LOCATION: Smith University Center; Florence, N.C.
RECORDS: King 5-9, 4-4 Conference Carolinas; North Greenville 1-13, 0-7 Conference Carolinas
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
- Mays and Brandon Lamberth got the Tornado off to a hot start with a triple and layup.
- The tandem duplicated the feat later in the half, giving King their largest lead of the opening 20 minutes at 17-9 seven minutes in.
- The Tornado advantage was whittled down to 19-16 before a layup and trifecta from Mays that extended the King lead back to 24-18 midway through the period.
- North Greenville later pulled within 30-29 before a pair of Kenny Turner free throws.
- A Crusader triple again cut the King lead to one, but Turner responded with an offensive rebound and layup in the final minute of the half.
- Mays then beat the halftime buzzer with a triple, giving King a 38-32 lead at the break.
Second Half
- The opening seven minutes of the half was tight as the Crusaders came back and evened the score at 43.
- King extended the lead back to four, but the Crusaders came back and tied the game again at 51.
- Mays then made four free throws around a Kenny Turner dunk to stretch the Tornado lead back to 57-51.
- King then tried to put the game out of reach with a 9-0 run that was capped by a triples from Henry Okoye and Malik Payton, giving King a 69-55 lead.
- King then held the lead around 10 points for the final nine minutes to take the contest 87-78.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Mays led the Tornado with 30 points and seven rebounds.
- Turner followed with 14 points, five rebounds and four assists.
- Lamberth added 11 points and five rebounds.
FOR THE FOES
- Zak Perdew led four North Greenville scorers in double figures with 22 points.
- C.J. Jamison followed with 19 points and nine rebounds.
- Draylan Burton added 12 points and Seth Hewitt chipped in with 10 points.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- The 30 points for Mays marks the second time this season he has eclipsed the 30-point plateau. He scored 38 against Lees-McRae in November.
- Mays also matched a career-best with seven rebounds.
- Payton scored a career-high nine points, topping his previous high of two.
UP NEXT
- King returns home to face rival Lees-McRae College on Saturday. Tipoff from the Student Center Complex is slated for 4:30 p.m.
- North Greenville hosts Paine College on Thursday night.
