FAYETTEVILLE, N.C.  Dante Burden and John Baker combined to score 34 points in the second half as Methodist men's basketball held off visiting North Carolina Wesleyan for a crucial 88-81 league win in USA South Athletic Conference action Wednesday evening.

The Battling Bishops led for more than 17 minutes in the first half and led by as many as 10 points late in that first period. It was the play of Baker that allowed the Monarchs to tie the game at 44-44, and his 3-pointer at the 11-minute mark gave Methodist the lead for good. Over the final 20 minutes, the Monarchs outscored N.C. Wesleyan, 55-41, to earn the win.

Burden is catching fire at the right time as the regular season winds down. After scoring a season-high 29 last game against Pfeiffer, Burden returned with another 29-point outing against the Battling Bishops, including 20 points in the second half. He was matched by Baker turning in the best performance of his career as a collegiate athlete. Baker finished with career-high totals of 16 points, four made threes, three rebounds, and three assists. Baker was six-of-seven from the field for the game but he was a perfect five-of-five for 14 points in the final stanza.

THE ESSENTIALS
Final score: Methodist def. N.C. Wesleyan, 88-81
Records: Methodist 13-9 (9-5 USA South); N.C. Wesleyan 11-12 (7-8)
Location: Riddle Center; Fayetteville, N.C.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Three-pointer. Three-pointer. Assist. Assist. That was Baker's contributions to open the second half as he scored or assisted on the first four buckets of the period to give the Monarchs a 44-43 lead.
• With the game tied at 53-53 with under 12 minutes to play, Burden found Baker for the go-ahead three. On the very next Methodist possession, Zaire Edwards kicked out to Baker for another made long-range trey to put the Monarchs up 59-53. The Monarchs never looked back after that moment.
• Methodist was historic from the free throw line. The Monarchs shot 20-of-21 (95 percent) from the free throw line, including 19-of-20 in the second half to prevent a N.C. Wesleyan rally. Going back a full decade, Methodist has never shot better from the charity stripe (minimum 15 attempts).
• Not only were the Monarchs making their foul shots but they were making the shots that preceded them too. Methodist completed four three-point plays, including two consecutive and-ones in the second half that turned a 61-57 edge into a 67-59 advantage. It could be argued that those plays from Burden and Calvin Manley were game clinchers.

STAT FACTS

• Burden and Kaymon Mitchell excelled against a team full of trees that routinely trotted out four players listed above 6'4", including one player that stood at 6'10." Burden and Mitchell displayed their acrobatic finisher packages throughout the game. Burden shot 9-of-15 from the field and 8-of-12 on two pointers, in addition to a team-high five assists, along with five rebounds, two blocks, and a steal. Mitchell was 6-of-12 from the field for 13 points plus a team-high six boards.
• Manley finished with 11 points to be the fourth Monarch to score in double digits while Garren Dearman finished with eight points, three assists, and a team-high three steals, plus a block.
• For the third time this season, the Monarchs committed only six turnovers. Prior to this season, that had not been achieved by Methodist since February 2017.
• A.J. Frye led the Battling Bishops with 16 points and six assists.
• This game also served as payback as the Monarchs avenged a January 29 road loss to N.C. Wesleyan.

UP NEXT

• Methodist welcomes Greensboro College Saturday, February 15 at 2 p.m. to the Riddle Center for the Monarchs' Senior Day.
• N.C. Wesleyan is on the road to take on Greensboro February 18 at 7:30 p.m.