BREVARD, N.C. – For the second time this week the Brevard men's basketball team won a game by virtue of a 3-pointer in the waning moments, this time it came off the hand of Levi Lamb, who connected on a buzzer-beater that took down visiting N.C. Wesleyan 78-77 at Boshamer Gym on Sunday afternoon.
Trailing by 17 points on two occasions inside the final 13 minutes of the second half, Brevard (4-10) scratched its way back into the game with an 18-7 run that made for a 66-60 Bishop lead with 6:52 remaining. After a free throw by Adrian Moore pushed the lead to seven, Lamb knocked down a jumper and added a 3-pointer to trim the margin to 71-67.
N.C. Wesleyan (8-8) came up empty handed on the ensuing possession only before witnessing a 3-pointer by the Tornados' JaMarquis Johnson, which made for a one-point lead. A series of free throws by A.J. Frye along with a layup by Moore stretched the lead to 75-70 with 43 seconds left.
Johnson again answered the call with a timely trey, following a pass from Stevie Williams, to pull back within a pair. Despite a layup by Demari Hopper, N.C. Wesleyan hit on two free throws in a 13-second span to maintain a 77-75 edge with 9.2 seconds in the contest.
Johnson fought past a tough Bishop defense and had the ball stripped from his hands, which fell to Lamb with less than two seconds to go, who knocked down the 3-pointer from the left wing as time expired.
With the trey, Lamb tied Johnson for the team-high in points (18), all of which came in the second half. The sophomore sharpshooter finished 7-of-8 from the floor and 3-of-4 from beyond the arc after the intermission. Johnson capped off his afternoon by hitting 7-of-17 from the floor and 4-of-11 from 3-point range.
Qadhafi Turner came off the bench to finish with 13 points by virtue of hitting 5-of-10 from the floor. Williams rounded out double-digit scorers for Brevard, finishing with 11 points and six rebounds in the game.
Hopper climbed the glass for a team-high seven rebounds, helping the Tornados to finish with a 16-7 edge in second chance points. Brevard finished 31-of-59 (52.5%) from the field, knocking down 17-of-30 (56.7%) in the second half, in the victory.
Brevard capitalized on a strong first half by Johnson (10 points), Turner (nine) and Williams (seven) as the it finished 14-of-29 (48.3%) from the floor and 5-of-13 (38.5%) from beyond the arc.
N.C. Wesleyan had four players with at least five points, including Robert Wilson and McDowell, who closed with nine points apiece. The Bishops' offense knocked down 13-of-29 (44.8%) from the floor and was successful on 9-of-11 (81.8%) of its free throw attempts.
Wilson kick started the Bishop offense into high gear, scoring six of the first 12 points as they assumed 12-2 advantage inside the first four minutes of the contest. Brevard broke through N.C. Wesleyan's full-court press, finding an open Johnson who came through with an open trey, sparking a 9-3 run that allowed the Tornados to move within three.
With its offense in rhythm, Brevard pulled even at 16 following a 3-pointer from Williams and a layup by Turner at the 10:37 mark. After the Tornados grabbed their first lead, 20-19, following a shot by Johnson, N.C. Wesleyan scored seven of the next eight points to assume a six-point lead on a 3-pointer by McDowell.
Johnson and Turner got the offense back on track with five unanswered points, as Brevard enjoyed an 11-4 rally that culminated with a 31-all tie following a trey by Johnson. The Bishops scored seven points down the stretch to take a 38-36 lead into the intermission.
The men's basketball team returns to action on Friday, Jan. 26 at Huntingdon. For more information check out www.bctornados.com.
To listen to the call of Levi Lamb's buzzer beater, click here.