Barton, Belmont Abbey Advance to Men’s Basketball Semifinals

3/4/2023 12:31:27 AM

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The 2023 Atlantic Casualty Conference Carolinas Men’s Basketball Championship semifinals are set after a thrilling quarterfinal Friday night saw third-seeded Barton and fourth-seeded Belmont Abbey advance to Saturday.

In the first matchup, Belmont Abbey got off to a fast start behind the hot shooting of Wade Jackson and never trailed in an 89-79 victory over eight seed Mount Olive. Jackson hit his first three shots, all from beyond the 3-point arc, to give the Crusaders a 9-0 lead less than two minutes into the game. The Abbey led by as many as 17 points in the opening half, but Mount Olive closed the gap to six on a pair of Michael Brown free throws with 16 seconds left in the period. A Mario Lacy Jr. (BAC) dunk ended the first half with the Crusaders up 44-36. Mount Olive, led by nine points from Kaeleb Carter, used a 20-14 run to start the second half and cut the lead to two, 58-56. However, the Trojans would get no closer as six straight Belmont Abbey points pushed the lead back to eight and they never looked back. Wade Jackson netted a game-high 21 points to lead the Crusaders, Lacy finished with 18 points and three others scored in double figures including Charles Solomon who scored 15 and grabbed a game-high 15 rebounds. Brown led the Trojans with 21 points and eight rebounds while four others scored in double figures for Mount Olive.

Game two was an overtime thriller that saw Marcus Boykin sink a jumper with 14 seconds left in overtime to give the Bulldogs the 80-79 victory over the sixth-seeded Valkyries of Converse. The Converse fans packed Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium and the teams fed off the electric energy. The game featured nine ties and 13 lead changes as the teams traded punches throughout the game. Converse led for much of the first half and took a 42-39 lead into the break. The Valkyries were able to build a 10-point lead, 55-45, early in the second half and led by nine with 10:54 to play. However, a Trevon Spencer jumper sparked a 12-0 run for the Bulldogs that gave the Wilson, North Carolina program the 61-58 lead with 6:50 to play. Barton held a slim lead the rest of the way until Aaron Porcil converted a layup for Converse with seven seconds left and a Barton jumper at the buzzer rimmed out to send the game to overtime tied at 70.

And it's No. 3?? @BartonAthletics who survives and advances thanks to Marcus Boykin who is ice cold!??

Check out the game-winning basket from Marcus Boykin with 11 seconds to play!#LeadingTheWay | #SCTop10 @ESPNAssignDesk @espn @notthefakeSVP pic.twitter.com/RUBwXLwAt4
— Conference Carolinas (@ConfCarolinas) March 4, 2023

Porcil opened the extra time with a three-pointer and Converse held the lead until back-to-back baskets from Boykin and Donaven Hairston put Barton back in front, 78-77, with 1:54 on the clock. Converse converted 2-for-4 free throws leading to a 79-78 lead with 29 seconds left. On the ensuing possession, Boykin was able to shake his defender free and hit a fade-away jumper with 14 seconds left for what proved to be the game-winner. Boykin and Hairston each scored a game-high 23 points while Reese McDonald had 18 points and 11 rebounds. Spencer also finished in double figures with 10 points for the Bulldogs. Porcil led Converse with 19 points while Uzziah Dawkins netted 17, Earl Burgess III scored 14 and Jay Mitchell added 13. Bosko Bojovic grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds for the Valkyries in the loss.

Belmont Abbey will square off against top seed UNC Pembroke on Saturday, March 4 at 5:15 p.m. with Barton taking on No. 2 Emmanuel at 7:30 p.m. in the semifinals of the 2023 Atlantic Casualty Conference Carolinas Men’s Basketball Championship at Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium on the campus of Wofford in Spartanburg, South Carolina.

Fans can watch every game of the tournament live via the Conference Carolinas Digital Network and BlueFrame at conferencecarolinasdn.com. Information regarding the championship schedule, bracket and Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium are available here.

2023 Atlantic Casualty Conference Carolinas Men’s Basketball Championship
First Round – Sunday, February 26
#7 Francis Marion def. #10 King, 100-80, at Converse (Box Score)
#8 Mount Olive def. #9 Lees-McRae, 95-87, at Chowan (Box Score)

Second Round – Monday, February 27
#6 Converse def. #7 Francis Marion, 81-78 (Box Score)
#8 Mount Olive def. #5 Chowan, 97-90 (Box Score)

Quarterfinals – Friday, March 3 (Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium - Spartanburg, S.C.)
#4 Belmont Abbey def. #8 Mount Olive, 89-79 (Box Score)
#3 Barton def. #6 Converse, 80-79 (Box Score)

Semifinals – Saturday, March 4 (Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium - Spartanburg, S.C.)
#4 Belmont Abbey vs. #1 UNC Pembroke, 5:15 p.m.
#3 Barton vs. #2 Emmanuel, 7:30 p.m.

Final – Sunday, March 5 (Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium - Spartanburg, S.C.)
Winner of Semifinal #1 vs. Winner of Semifinal #2, 4 p.m.