Contact: C. Scott Shasteen
Sports Information
Nisbett Center 140
(931) 393-1605
sportsinformation@mscc.edu
March 8, 2012
Sean Gardner scored 16 points and Brandon Hunter added 12 as the Motlow Bucks used depth and balanced scoring to beat Roane State 82-77 in the quarterfinals of the TCCAA/Region VII Tournament Wednesday night in Jackson, Tennessee.
The Bucks (16-10) went into the tournament seeded sixth, while Roane State (21-9) was seeded third. The two teams had split during the regular season, with each winning on their home floor.
Motlow will face Cleveland State (14-13) on Friday at 4 p.m. in a matchup of upset winners. The Cougars, seeded seventh, handed second-seed Southwest Tennessee a 93-80 defeat in a quarterfinal game on Wednesday.
The Bucks swept Cleveland State during the regular season, winning by seven at Copperweld Arena and by eight in Cleveland.
Nine different Bucks scored at least six points each for the Bucks, lead by Gardner and Hunter who were the only two in double figures. Raul Tutton, Jr. added nine, JC Bonny and Jeff Graham scored eight each, and Andrew Scofield, Chris Jordon, Darryl Bond, and Mike Tomlin each added six.
Gardner's driving layup not only went in the basket but drew a foul with 1:17 remaining and the freshman calmly went to the line and completed the three-point play to give the Bucks an 80-75 lead.
After a Raiders basket, Hunter was fouled and wrapped up one of his best games of the year by sinking both free throws to seal the win with 9.8 seconds remaining.
The Bucks led 49-40 at halftime, but the Raiders chipped away until they trailed by just one, 70-69, with five minutes to play. Bond and Hunter each scored baskets though, with Hunter adding a free throw to increase the lead back to 75-70 with 4:25 remaining. Roane State didn't get within a point again.
Listen live to Friday's semifinal contest on WHMT radio 105.1 FM, 740 AM, TullahomaRadio.com, and LightTUBe channel 11.
Interact with Motlow Athletics on Facebook and Twitter.