Newberry, S.C. - The Newberry College Wolves (3-5, 3-3 SAC) upset the No. 9 Royals of Queens (7-2, 4-2 SAC) by a final score of 67-65 as TJ Brown hit the game winner to put the Wolves ahead with 1.1 seconds remaining.
"We have had some tough games early, and they have not flinched, not backed up," said head coach Jason Taylor. "They kept working. They kept getting better. I'm happy for it, but we've still got to keep getting better."
The Wolves would start off hot, opening with a 10-2 run behind a pair of threes from Marcus Ford and Brown. Then they kept their foot on the accelerator for a 14-0 run shortly after two more three-pointers from Ford and an old-fashioned three-point play from QuanDaveon McCollum to take a 20-point lead nearly eight minutes into the game. The Royals would try to make a push with an 8-0 run of their own, but Devario Sheppard would step into a three to hold them at bay before the Wolves answered with an 8-0 run to close out the half, sending the game into the break at 43-23 in favor of Newberry.
The Royals would come out of the half trying to chip away at Newberry's lead, but the Wolves would once again answer with baskets from Brown and Robin Bedford. However, the Royals would attempt to make another push with a 12-2 run that cut the lead back down to single-digits. McCollum would attempt to stop the bleeding, but the Royals continued to press their attack with a 10-0 run to crawl all the way back to take a one-point lead. Brown would then hit a pair of clutch baskets to put the Wolves back up by five. Both teams would go back-and-forth, grinding into a 65-65 stalemate at the 3:23 mark. Both teams turned up their defenses resulting in scoreless possession after scoreless possession, but the Wolves would find themselves with an opportunity to take the final shot with the shot clock turned off in a tie ballgame. Brown would call his own number, pulling up for a baseline jumper that put the Wolves up two with 1.1 seconds remaining, igniting the crowd into a standing ovation, and winning the game for Newberry by a final score of 67-65.
Brown finished with 14 points and 6 rebounds after hitting the game-winner. McCollum led the team in scoring with 16 points, and Ford joined them in double-digits with 12 points and 5 assists. Stremlow had a solid outing with 8 points and 7 rebounds. Bedford had 9 points off the bench, and Sheppard and Jalen Johnson rounded out the scoring column with 5 and 3 points, respectively.
The Wolves return to action on Saturday, Dec. 11 as they host Carson-Newman at 4 p.m. in Eleazer Arena.
