AUGUSTA, Ga. – After a brief break for Thanksgiving, the Augusta University men's basketball team returned to Christenberry Fieldhouse on Sunday afternoon and endured a non-conference battle with Wingate Bulldogs to pull out a 76-72 victory.
Augusta (5-1) junior-transfer Kyle Doyle scored his season-high 16 points. It was his second-straight game scoring in double figures and he added five rebounds and was 7-for-8 shooting from the floor.
Senior Keshun Sherrill took over a tight game in the closing minutes and scored the final 10 points for the Jaguars. He led all scorers with 29 points and chipped in seven boards and four assists.
Junior Tamyrik Fields produced eight points, three rebounds and two steals, and sophomore's Ja'Shawn Brooks and Tyvez Monroe each scored seven, with Monroe adding 11 rebounds.
Wingate (2-4) was led by Josh Dominguez's 18 points and Keith Griffin and Mike Baez's 12 each. Augusta posted a 46.7 field-goal percentage (28-for-60) to Wingate's 40.0 percent, but the Bulldogs shot 77.8 percent (21-for-27) at the free-throw line to Augusta's 51.7 percent (15-for-29).
The Jags grabbed four more rebounds (41-37) than the Bulldogs and had 17 points off turnovers to their nine. Each team matches 22 points in the paint in a contest that had 11 tied scored and 10 lead changes.
Augusta won the tipoff and scored early to open the game. Brooks and Sherrill drilled back-to-back three pointers in the 17th minute of the first half as the Jags used a 10-2 run to start the game.
Doyle came off the Augusta bench and got a quick dunk in the first offensive possession he was a part of. He completed an and-one play after he made a jumper and took a foul. The Jags led 15-6, but Wingate's Mike Baez scored five fast points to make it a four-point game with 12:30 to go in the first.
Monroe put the Jags up by 11 with a corner three pointer with 7:14 on the clock. Wingate answered with three shots in a row, the third being a trey to cut their deficit to five points. Jeremy Williams hit two floaters in the lane for a 29-28 score with 3:33 to go until half.
Wingate took their first lead of the day 33-32 on Neico Robinson's two free throws with just over a minute to go. The Bulldogs took the half 37-35, but Sherrill tied the game on a right-side jumper to begin the second half.
Josh Dominguez gave Wingate a nine point advantage with 13 minutes to play in the second half. Doyle and senior Vlad Cobzaru scored interior baskets for the Jags in the next two trips down the floor for a 52-49 game.
Doyle stayed strong in the paint and made the next two buckets for a one-point game with 9:44 remaining. Doyle scored double figures with 11 minutes to play in the game.
The Jags were down the next three minutes until Sherrill sunk a three pointer off an assist from Brooks to steal back a 61-59 advantage. Two free throws gave Wingate the lead back, but Sherrill's third made shot from beyond the arc pushed Augusta back up by two.
Sherrill answered with another layup and made the free throw after he was fouled for a 72-69 lead with 1:44 to play. He scored the final 10 points for Augusta and the Jags held on for a 76-72 victory.
The Jags head north to Bowie, Md., to battle Bowie State on Sunday, Dec. 4 at 2:00 p.m.
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