MONTREAT, N.C.— The Montreat men's basketball team wrapped up its 3-game homestand Wednesday night as it took on the Tennessee Wesleyan University Bulldogs in Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) action. Putting their 4-game winning streak on the line, the Cavaliers survived a late charge from their opposition and snatched an 88-82 victory, improving to 10-9 (8-8 AAC) in the process.
 
Five ties and two lead changes characterized the opening seven minutes of the first half as both the Cavs and Bulldogs attempted to find their footing. The hosts made just five of their initial 15 shot attempts, but baskets from five different Montreat players kept the score level at 14-14 through 6:59.
 
Tennessee Wesleyan (6-10, 6-9 AAC) failed to capitalize on the Cavaliers' slow start, and the home team made the visitors pay. Jamiel Wright sparked a 12-5 stretch in which Montreat made five of six looks from the floor, allowing the Cavs to establish a 5-point edge (21-16) midway through the frame.
 
The Bulldogs responded with five swift points to knot the game at 21, but Montreat immediately answered with a 10-0 spurt that was capped off by a jumper and a triple from Collin Mills. A native of Asheville, N.C., Mills proved responsible for a stretch of nine Cavalier points as he created a 35-25 lead with 4:32 remaining in the half.
 
While Tennessee Wesleyan rattled off a 10-3 run that whittled the Montreat advantage to just three points, Gabriel Rivera finished a runner off the glass ahead of the buzzer to maintain the home side's lead at 42-37 entering halftime.
 
Montreat shot an efficient 45.9 percent (17-37 FG) from the field and 42.9 percent (6-14 3-pt FG) from deep. Meanwhile, its counterpart took and made the same number of 3-pointers, and it converted shots at a 43.3 percent rate overall (13-30 FG). The Cavs relied on their production in the paint (14 points) and off the bench (28 points) to hold a 5-point lead at the break. Mills led all scorers with 11 points, and Wright added 10 points of his own. Nine different Cavaliers scored in the first half, while Elochukwu Eze and Wright each snatched a team-high three boards.
 
Rivera scored the hosts' first five points in the second half, while Jack Keller, Eze and Tyler Murray also poured in baskets to hand Montreat its largest lead of the night, 55-44, merely 5:14 into the frame. The Cavs led by as many as 11 points on three occasions, but that didn't stop the Bulldogs from making a run that pushed the home team to the brink.
 
A 10-2 span saw TWU cut its deficit to 61-58 midway through the half, but a Keller jumper and three Michael Erbeck free throws slowed the visitors' momentum.
 
Over the next nine minutes, Montreat possessed leads between four and eight points; however, a loose-ball foul coupled with a technical meant the Bulldogs had a chance to tie the game despite trailing 83-79. Tennessee Wesleyan made three of its four opportunities at the charity stripe, and the Cavaliers closed out their fifth straight win from there. Rivera finished off his 18-point second half with a basket in the paint, and Keller and RJ Manginello ended things at the free-throw line. In the end, Montreat survived TWU's late surge and captured an 88-82 triumph.
 
"We were efficient on the offensive end of the floor tonight, both in how we shot and took care of the basketball," said head coach Anthony Barringer. "The 5-game winning streak is nice, but we still have a lot of basketball ahead of us. We'll enjoy this win and then get ready for Campbellsville this weekend."
 
For the third time this season, Montreat finished a contest shooting at least 50.0 percent (33-66 FG). The Cavs also drained eight of their 22 3-point attempts (36.4 percent) and 14 of their 19 free throws (73.7 percent). On the other side, Tennessee Wesleyan went 24-for-63 (38.1 percent) from the field, 39.3 percent (11-28 3-pt FG) from deep and 79.3 percent (23-29 FT) at the line. Both teams committed eight turnovers apiece, but the hosts ended the night with advantages in rebounding (39-34), paint points (36-16) and bench points (40-17) to tilt the contest in their favor.
 
Rivera led the home team with a career-high 23 points, while both Mills and Wright contributed 13 points on offense. Wright also had a team-best three assists, and Eze paced all players with 10 rebounds. Manginello scored a career-best eight points, including the final two of the ballgame.
 
The Montreat men's basketball team takes a brief hiatus from conference play on Saturday when it squares off against Campbellsville University. Tipoff is slated for 3:30 p.m. in Campbellsville, Ky.