Blue Lights gave a loaded Johnson & Wales squad everything it wanted in Charlotte Saturday afternoon, before the top-ranked Wildcats pulled away in the second half for a 102-91 win.
The Thoroughbreds (6-9) led by as many as six point in the first half and at halftime 47-46 to serve notice that they were not intimidated by JWU's lofty ranking in the USCAA. And two free throws by Jawan Browder made it a one-point deficit for the Herd, 66-65, with 11-47 remaining in the second half.
But over the next five minutes, the Wildcats (13-3) began to slowly put distance between themselves and the Thoroughbreds, accentuated by a Majerle Poole dunk with 6:00 to play, pushing the lead to 85-73. BLC did not fold and showed poise in trimming the deficit to four, 92-88, on a Chris Dickey free throw with 2:02 remaining.
But that was as close at it would get as JWU pulled away for the final score.
Browder and Kenny Anderson finished the day with 18 points apiece. Ezzell-Upchurch tallied 14, and Vic Ngong added 12, all from beyond the arc on 4-7 3-point shooting. Wildcat standout Robert Hobson led all scorers with 34, two shy of his career high.
The Thoroughbreds and Wildcats will meet again on February 18 in Apex.
Blue Lights returns home for a Tuesday matchup with Virginia University of Lynchburg. Gametime is 6:00 pm at Hope Community Church Apex.
