COLUMBIA, S.C. – The Lane Dragons scored the final six points in the final 79 seconds to beat the Benedict Tigers 72-68 in an SIAC men’s basketball contest on Saturday afternoon in the Benjamin E. Mays HRC Arena.
The Tigers fell to 6-7 overall and 3-3 in the SIAC with their second straight loss. Lane improved to 6-7 overall and 5-2 in the SIAC.
Jordan Smith led Benedict with 17 points, while Andrew Crawford added 15. Deonte Johnson had a game-high 15 rebounds.
Donald Stewart led the Dragons with 23 points, while Terrance Bridgeman added 20.
Benedict shot just 35.1 percent from the floor, including just 30.7 percent in the second half. Lane shot 43.3 percent for the game and 46.7 percent in the second half.
The Tigers had a 58-52 lead with 7:35 left to play.
The Dragons scored six straight points to tie the game on a layup by Bryant Hill with 5:53 left to play.
The Dragons led 64-61 with 3:13 left, but the Tigers regained the lead on a free throw by Brennan Reynard and a 3-pointer by Jordan Smith.
Lane took a one-point lead on two free throws, but Benedict took the lead on a jumper by Allen Elmore with 1:19 left to play.
Donald Stewart gave the Dragons the lead for good on a jumper by Stewart with 55 seconds left.
The Tigers missed a pair of shots and Stewart sank two free throws with 33 seconds left for a 70-67 lead. Lane added two more free throws in the final 13 seconds to seal the win.
benedicttigers.com
