Runnin' Bulldogs Use Balance To Roll Past Lees-McRae, 91-61, Wednesday
November 17, 2011 | Men's Basketball
BOILING SPRINGS - Guards Max Landis, Tyler Strange and Jason Dawson each scored 12 points and combined for 17 assists to lead Gardner-Webb to a 91-61 rout of Lees-McRae Wednesday night in Paul Porter Arena.
The Runnin' Bulldogs (2-1) led by 19 at the half and used a quick, 17-6 run to start the second half to put the game away early. Gardner-Webb led by as many as 43 points in the second half, and saw all 12 players available for action play at least 10 minutes in the game.
GWU dished off a season-high 27 assists on 36 made baskets in the game, and committed only 11 turnovers.
"I thought we did a great job tonight handling the basketball and making correct passes," said GWU head coach Chris Holtmann. "We made shots early in both halves, but to have 27 assists on 36 made shots is a bright spot for me. We made good decisions with the basketball tonight and cut down on our turnovers."
Landis started the game off with a three-pointer that sparked a 14-2 run by Gardner-Webb out of the gate, and Lees-McRae (0-3) never recovered. Landis finished with 10 of his career-high 12 points by halftime, and finished the game with seven assists (no turnovers) and a pair of steals.
"The first shot that went in gave me some confidence," said Landis. "We were able to create some easy opportunities off of turnovers and that helped us get out to a big lead."
Dawson was also strong in the early stages, draining a pair of three-pointers in the first three minutes of the game. The 5-foot-10 junior finished 4-of-4 from three-point range, dished off five assists (one turnover) and had a steal in his second strong performance in a row.
Strange came off the bench to hit 4-of-8 shots to finish with his dozen, which was supplemented by five assists (no turnovers), five rebounds and three steals in just 16 minutes.
Gardner-Webb shot 52.9 percent for the game (36-of-68) and 11-of-24 from long distance (45.8 percent). The 'Dogs turned 21 Lees-McRae turnovers into 34 points as well, posting 14 steals and a 17-2 edge on the fast break (six dunks).
Kevin Hartley (11 points) and Donta Harper (10 points) joined Strange in double figures off the bench, as the Gardner-Webb reserves outscored Lees-McRae 50-12. Laron Buggs added nine points and Mike Bryon scored eight for the Runnin' Bulldogs.
Lees-McRae shot 43.1 percent from the floor (22-of-51) and 35.0 percent from three-point range (7-of-20). The Bobcats were outrebounded 39-28 by the taller Runnin' Bulldogs.
B.J. Battle scored all 19 of his points in the second half to lead Lees-McRae offensively. Forward Jeremiah Henry added 16 points and Asad Lamont scored 11 for the Bobcats.
Gardner-Webb will begin one of its busiest stretches of the season on Saturday, traveling to face South Carolina State at 7:30 in Orangeburg, S.C. The Runnin' Bulldogs will then hit the road for games at Indiana (Nov. 21) and Butler (Nov. 23) and in Chattanooga, Tenn., vs. Savannah State (Nov. 26) and Chattanooga (Nov. 27).
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