PEMBROKE – The UNC Pembroke men's basketball team scored 30 points off of 20 Wingate turnovers and dominated the offensive boards on the way to a convincing 91-63 victory over the Bulldogs on Wednesday evening at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court.
The Braves (2-1) improved to 7-2 in home openers under head coach
Ben Miller with the triumph, while also recording their most lopsided win in the 37-year-old series with their U.S. 74 rivals. It was the second-straight setback for Wingate (1-2) who fell to 23-25 all-time against the Black & Gold.
Alex Bradley scored 13 of his team-best 19 points in the second half to pace the hosts, while
Brandon Watts put up 15 of his 18 points in the latter stanza, while also tacking up his fourth career double-double with 11 rebounds.
Nigel Grant added a baker's dozen, while fellow newcomer
Andrew Evans chipped in 12 points.
Zeriq Lolar totaled a game-best 22 points for Wingate who was out-rebounded 43-31 on the night, including a 17-10 disparity on the offensive boards. The 17 offensive boards led to 31 second chance points for the hosts.
UNCP had extended a seven-point halftime lead out to double digits just 67 seconds into the second half, but used a 14-5 run later in the period to push that advantage out to 20 points, 71-51, on a mid-range jumper by
Carson Mounce with 7:47 left to play. The Braves, who shot an eye-popping 63.6 percent, connected on 11 of their last 14 shots (78.6 percent) to seal the outcome.
After going tit for tat with their region rivals through the first seven minutes of action, UNCP strung together seven-straight points midway through the period to give itself some breathing room. The Braves led 30-22 after Bradley's jumper with 4:14 left before the break, but the Bulldogs scored nine of the next 10 points to knot the game back up at the 1:48 mark. The Black & Gold, however, would lug a 37-31 lead into the locker rooms.
UNCP will continue a three-game home stand on Saturday when they welcome Winston-Salem State (2-1) to Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court. Tipoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.
