PEMBROKE – The UNC Pembroke men's basketball scored 20 points off of 14 turnovers and held visiting Flagler to just 25.7 percent shooting in the second half as the Braves snapped a three-game skid with an 82-62 victory over the Saints on Wednesday evening at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court.
 
The triumph marked the 10^th home win of the season for the Black & Gold (15-7, 8-5 PBC) who climbed within a game of Peach Belt Conference-leading Augusta as well. It was the fourth loss in the last six outings for the Saints (9-11, 3-10) who fell to 0-8 all-time in Pembroke.
 
Freshman Akia Pruitt cashed in on his second-straight double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds to lead the hosts, who also got 14 points and eight boards from Brandon Watts. Nigel Grant chipped in a dozen points as well, while Micah Kinsey tallied six assists, four steals and five rebounds in just 17 minutes off the bench.
 
Jeffercy Jean turned in 16 points to lead Flagler, who were out-rebounded by a hefty 56-37 margin, including a 28-17 disparity on the offensive boards. Vaughn McCall added 14 points, while Chris Williams narrowly missed a double-double with nine points and a team-best 11 rebounds.
 
Down one at the break, UNCP connected on 7-of-9 shots over a four-minute stretch midway through the second half to open up a 15-point lead, and then cruised the rest of the way out. The Saints climbed to within 11 points on two free throws by Williams at the 4:27 mark, but the Braves answered with an 11-2 run to pad their advantage out to 20 points, 80-60, three minutes later.
 
The first half was a near polar opposite on offense for UNCP who shot just 28.9 percent in the opening stanza. Flagler led by as much as seven points with 7-1/2 minutes left before the break, but a dominant effort on the offensive glass by the hosts kept them in it. The Saints eventually toted a 34-31 lead into the break.
 
UNCP will open up a two-game road trip on Saturday when it heads to northeast Georgia to take on Augusta (16-5, 9-4) in the second half of a 1:30 p.m. doubleheader inside Christenberry Fieldhouse. The two teams met earlier this season with the Jaguars grabbing a tight 80-78 victory in Pembroke.