Franklin Springs, Ga – The Emmanuel Men's Basketball team hosted Lees McRae College tonight in Conference play. The two teams were evenly matched in the first half, trading points and the lead.  The Lions led at half, 38-32 but exploded for 51 points in the second half to win convincingly, 89-72. With the win, the Lions improve to 12-7 on the season, 10-1 in conference action.
 
The first half of play was competitive, with both teams making big plays that got the Shaw Athletic Center rocking. The Bobcats jumped out to an early 5-2 lead, but the Lions responded to tie things at 11 on an and-one opportunity by Chris Dees. The Bobcats responded to go back up by 6, but the Lions retook the lead, 25-24, on key plays by Devin Story and Kendall Latney. In the first half, the Lions were 14-29 from the field (48%) and 7-10 from the foul line. The Lions closed out the half outscoring the Bobcats 13-8 to head into the break holding a 38-32 lead.
 
 Emmanuel came out of the gate strong after half, with Tavarus Webb and Elisee Ehuie helping push the Lions lead to 49-41. Kendall Latney continued to play well offensively, scoring 9 points early in the 2^nd to push the Lions lead to 59-43. The Lions offense exploded for 51 points in the half, connecting on 19-31 shots from the field (61%) and 7-11 from three-point range. A three by Chris Dees with 4:54 to play expanded the Lions lead to 27 points, 81-54. The Bobcats answered back, going on a 19-8 run to close out the game, but the Lions won by double digits, 89-72.
 
Four Lions ended their night in double figures scoring, with Kendall Latney leading the way with 21 points, 5 assists, and 3 steals. Elisee Ehuie added 15 points while Chris Dees went 3-5 from beyond the arc for 14 points. Tavarus Webb contributed a double double, with 13 points, 11 rebounds, 6 assists and 5 blocked shots.
 
The Lions are back in action on Tuesday at 7PM against Southern Wesleyan at the Shaw Athletic Center. For more information on Emmanuel Athletics, visit goeulions.com.