BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. - The Coker University men's basketball team battled in its Division I exhibition at Gardner-Webb on Tuesday night (Dec. 3), but ultimately fell by a score of 73-59.
The two teams played through the first four minutes with only two points apiece, before Gardner-Webb would jump out to a 6-2 lead five minutes in. The Cobras would come back to tie the contest at six with buckets from Williams Oneyodi and Jaylin Stewart, before Coker would jump out to a 12-7 lead going to the under-12 media timeout. The Cobras would extend their lead to as many as seven headed to the under-eight media timeout, before the Runnin' Bulldogs would flip the script and take a 24-23 lead with under five minutes to play. Coker would eventually knot the game back up at 26-26 with free throws from Roy Ellis, before a back-and-forth final few minutes would send the teams to the locker room with Gardner-Webb leading just 31-30. In total, Coker would lead the contest for 10:32 in the first half
The Runnin' Bulldogs would start the second half on a 14-3 run that spanned through the first media timeout, stretching their lead to 12. The Runnin' Bulldogs would extend their lead to as many as 19 in the second half, before Coker would battle back in the final few minutes.
Chandler Lindsey led the Cobras with 17 points in the contest, while Roy Ellis was the other Cobra in double figures with 10 points. Eight other Cobras contributed in the scoring column on the night. Coker out-rebounded Gardner-Webb 41-40 in the game, led by seven boards from Onyeodi. Noel Pinnock also grabbed five rebounds in the contest for Coker. KJ Harris dished out a team-high five assists in the game, while Lindsey added three and Royce Hunter, Dakota Jennings, Chris Swiney and AJ McQuaige also registered assists in the game. Onyeodi and Lindsey each recorded two steals in the game, while Harris and Ellis also had takeaways in the game. McQuaige registered two rejections off the bench in the game, while Harris also had one block in the contest.
The Cobras return to South Atlantic Conference action at home on Saturday (Dec. 7) when they welcome Mars Hill for a 4:00 p.m. tip-off. Video and live stats for the game will be available at www.cokercobras.com.