HICKORY, N.C. --- Reggie Bratton recorded 17 points to lead the Lenoir-Rhyne men's basketball team to a 77-64 win over visiting Tusculum Saturday night at Shuford Memorial Gymnasium in South Atlantic Conference action.

The Bears (8-3, 2-0 SAC) have won four of their last five games and five in a row over the Pioneers (5-7, 0-1 SAC).

Tusculum sophomore Jimmy Boone recorded a career-high 21 points, shooting 8-for-13 from the floor, including five 3-pointers. Senior Jordan Lear added 17 points, while Kyle Moore finished with 13 markers. Junior Ryan Troutman finished with five points and a game-high seven assists.

L-R's Josh Rudder tallied 15 points, while Jonathan Cook and Josh Kindred added 14 and 11 points, respectively.

The Bears led 36-31 at halftime, but Tusculum got back-to-back three-pointers by Boone to tie the contest at 37-37. L-R answered with an 8-0 run in the opening moments of the second period to take a 45-37 advantage, capped off by a three-point play by Donte' Watson.

With L-R leading 49-39, Boone and Lear added three-pointers to cut the deficit to 49-45. The Bears moved out to a nine-point advantage (56-47), but Tusculum answered with a 9-3, including a pair of free throws by Lavonti Jeter as L-R led 58-55 with six minutes remaining in the game.

Lenoir-Rhyne scored eight unanswered points, including four markers by Bratton as the Bears moved ahead by 11 (66-55) with 3:55 left on the clock. Lear followed with a three-pointer for the Pioneers to cut the deficit to eight, but that's as close as Tusculum would get.

L-R shot 57 percent from the floor, including 8-for-19 from three-point territory. Tusculum shot 42 percent from the field, including a blistering 13-for-27 (48%) from beyond the arc. TC out-rebounded the Bears by a 31-21 margin, including 13-4 on the offensive glass, but L-R forced 21 Pioneer turnovers.

Tusculum begins a four-game home-stand on Monday with a rematch against Concord beginning at 7 p.m. at Pioneer Arena.