HICKORY, N.C. – The Newberry men's basketball team prevailed in the rubber match of the season series against Lenoir-Rhyne on Saturday afternoon, earning a 61-60 road victory in a back and forth affair.

After dropping the first contest with the Bears back in December, the Wolves defended home court in Eleazer Arena on Jan. 18, nailing a game-winning bank shot to send Lenoir-Rhyne home with a 62-60 defeat.

10 days later, Saturday's result was quite similar for Newberry (12-8, 5-5 SAC).

After a seesaw battle for the game's first 12 minutes left the score knotted at 16, the Wolves found some breathing room with a quick 11-3 burst thanks in part to four points from Luke Seals (Ponca City, Okla.), and two Jalen Johnson (Sumter, S.C.) free throws to go up 27-19.

A few minutes later, the score at the end of 20 minutes read Wolves, 29, Bears, 22.

Malik Joseph (Eleuthera, Bahamas) put the Wolves up nine early in the second 20 minutes, the largest lead Newberry would enjoy on the day, and the teams would continue their punch-counterpunch battle throughout the second half.

Though Lenoir-Rhyne (8-11, 3-8 SAC) cut the Wolves' lead down to two points at 42-40 and again at 44-42, an Andrew Robinson (Lexington, S.C.) steal and score pushed the Newberry advantage back to eight with five minutes remaining, 54-46.

An 11-4 Lenoir-Rhyne run suddenly dwindled the Newberry edge down to one with 57 seconds on the clock, but the Wolves bore down and got a late steal from QuanDaveon McCollum (Clio, S.C.) who subsequently converted a 3-point play to put the game on ice with one tick left. The Bears sank a 3-pointer as time expired, but it wasn't enough as the Wolves have now won four of their last five games.

McCollum's 17-point, 10-rebound double-double – his sixth of the season – led Newberry, as did Joseph's 15 points. Robinson and Malakhi Stremlow (Traverse City, Mich.) chipped in seven points apiece. The Wolves once again controlled the glass, outrebounding the Bears 41-29.

T.J. Nesmith scored 24 points to lead Lenoir-Rhyne, followed by Nas Tyson's 18-point effort.

Newberry returns to action in another road contest Wednesday against the Anderson Trojans. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.