Wingate University shot a scorching 9-for-16 from three-point range and came away with a 61-50 victory over Tusculum College in a South Atlantic Conference men's basketball game Saturday afternoon at Pioneer Arena.

Chase Smith scored all 12 of his points on four three-pointers and Robert Carpenter added a trio of treys for nine points for the Bulldogs (14-8, 9-5 SAC), who moved into sole possession of second place in the SAC while the Pioneers (11-13, 8-6 SAC) dropped into a tie for third place with Anderson.

Dionte Grey matched his career highs for the Pioneers with 12 points and four assists, while Rob Troutman sank three three-pointers and added 11 points and Justin Steigerwald chipped in with 10 points and a game-high seven assists. However, the Pioneers went just 15-for-43 (34.9 percent) from the field and were outscored off the bench 26-3 by the Bulldogs.

Odell Turner led all players with game highs of 16 points, eight rebounds and six blocked shots for Wingate, which connected on 51.4 percent (19-for-37) overall and added a 14-for-17 performance at the free-throw line in the victory.

Wingate never trailed in the contest, scoring the game's first basket on a three-pointer by Smith with 2:14 gone in the first half. Another three from Smith and one from Carpenter pushed the Bulldog lead to 13-4 after six minutes of play, and Wingate went on to halftime with a 13-point advantage at 31-18. Smith netted a game-high nine points in the first half for the Bulldogs, while Kevin Vest and Troutman paced the Pioneers with five points apiece.

In the second half, the Pioneers went to work on the deficit, pulling within 33-27 on a three-pointer by Troutman with 15:17 to play. However, the Bulldogs responded with back-to-back buckets by Paidrick Matilus and a three-pointer from Carpenter to go ahead 40-28 with 13:06 left. Tusculum was able to get back to within eight points (49-41) as Troutman sank another three with 5:56 left, but a block on the defensive end by Turner led to a three-point play by the Bulldogs' leading scorer at the other end with 4:46 to go to push Wingate into a double-figure lead for good.

Vest finished with nine points and four rebounds for the Pioneers, while starting center Tommy Klempin chipped in with five points and four boards. Tusculum's lone points off the bench came on a three-pointer by Sean Rowe with 5:36 left in the first half.

The Pioneers were able to lock down the Bulldogs on the offensive glass, limiting Wingate to just four offensive rebounds and no second-chance points. In all, just 18 of Wingate's 61 points came in the paint, while 27 came from three-point range and 14 more from the foul line.

Tusculum will be back in action Wednesday night at Anderson beginning at 8 p.m. The teams will enter the contest tied for third place in the SAC at 8-6, with the Trojans holding the edge over the Pioneers based on their 55-51 victory in Greeneville on January 19.