SALISBURY, N.C. – Despite four members of the Newberry College (8-7, 1-4 SAC) men's basketball team notching double digit point totals in the contest, the Wolves would fall short of picking up their second conference win of the season as they were bested by the Indians of Catawba by a final score of 85-72.

Senior QuanDaveon McCollum (Clio, S.C.) led the team with 18 points while sophomore Malik Joseph (Eleuthera, Bahamas) and freshman Drake Downs (Simpsonville, S.C.) each pitched in 14 of their own. Junior Robin Bedford (London, England) added 10 points to the Wolves total on the evening. Joseph led the team in rebounds with nine while three other players, including McCollum and Downs brought in seven boards each.

Catawba was able to jump out to an early lead in the opening minutes of the contest as they went ahead on a 7-0 run in the first two minutes of the game.  Newberry, however, would begin to gain momentum of their own as they would post an 11-2 run over the next four minutes to take the two-point advantage.  After the Indians were able to hit a three-point bucket to take the lead back momentarily, the Wolves rattled off 10 straight points in their favor to open the score up leaving it at 22-12 with just over eight minutes remaining in the first half.

The Indians would slowly claw into the Wolves lead over the remaining time of the first half as they were able to get back to within a handful at the final media timeout of the period. They would take the lead momentarily as time wound down in the first stanza, but Downs would like down the hammer with just over 10 seconds left to play in the half to pull the score back level and that's where it stood heading into halftime.

Catawba was able to quickly put four points on the board to retake the lead in the start of the second half, but Newberry clawed back into the lead for a moment at 41-40, but unfortunately for the Newberry faithful that would be the final time they saw the scoreline in their favor as the Indians were able to stymie countless Newberry rally attempts after their first drive, keeping the Indians advantage to less that double digits until the final minute of the game.  The Wolves tried to mount a comeback late in the period, but it would fall short of the mark as they dropped the 85-72 contest.

The Wolves return home this Saturday, January 14 as they look to pick up their second conference win of the season with a match-up against the Eagles of Carson-Newman.  Tip is set for 4:00 p.m.