PEMBROKE – The UNC Pembroke men's basketball team scored 21 points off of 17 North Georgia turnovers, but needed clutch free throw shooting in the game's final minute to ward off the Nighthawks, 79-73, on Saturday evening at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court.
The triumph marked the fourth-straight victory for the Braves (10-7, 4-4 PBC) who won for the fourth time in the last five matchups with their PBC West rivals. It was the fifth-straight loss for North Georgia (4-13, 2-6) who has dropped eight games this season by eight or less points.
Brandon Watts scored a season- and game-best 27 points on 10-of-15 shooting to pace the Braves, while also adding seven boards, three steals and a pair of blocks. Alex Bradley recorded 16 points for the hosts as well, while Brandon Winford tallied 15 points and six rebounds in 33 minutes of action.
The Nighthawks got double-digit scoring from four players in the setback, including Sean Brennan who turned in a team-best 18 points. Corey Green added 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting as well.
Engaged in a tie score coming out of the halftime gates, the Nighthawks stayed neck and neck for the first five minutes of the second half before a 3-pointer by Bradley with 14:59 left to play sparked the hosts on a game-changing 10-2 run that eventually gave them a seven-point cushion, 53-46, at the 12:09 mark. Corey Green made it a one-possession game with a running layup with 10 seconds remaining but, after Bradley canned a pair of free throws on the ensuing possession, an errant pass by Brennan sailed out of bounds to ice the outcome.
The first half featured five tie scores and three lead changes. The Black & Gold led by as much as five points, 19-14, in the opening stanza after Winford's layup with 10:38 left before the break, but the lead changed hands three more times before intermission before the teams finally settled on a 32-32 stalemate heading into the locker rooms.
The Braves will return to action on Monday when they trek to Morrow, Ga., to take on Clayton State (9-6, 4-4) in a key PBC inter-divisional matchup inside CSU's Athletics & Fitness Center. Tipoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.
