PEMBROKE – The UNC Pembroke men's basketball team shot just 35.5 percent from the field and turned the ball over eight times in the first half to dig itself an early hole, but engineered a key 20-2 run midway through the second half to upend visiting Georgia College, 76-69, on Friday afternoon at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court.
 
The result snapped a two-game skid for the Braves (10-4, 3-2 PBC) who improved to 6-1 at home with the victory as well. The setback snapped a five-game road winning streak for the Bobcats (8-5, 2-2) who have now come away empty in four of their last five trips to Pembroke.
 
Freshman Micah Kinsey tallied all of his career high 15 points in the second half to lead the Black & Gold, while James Murray-Boyles tacked up his first career double-double with 13 points and 11 boards. Alex Bradley chipped in 22 points and six assists to the cause, while Akia Pruitt matched a career best with a dozen rebounds and just missed the fourth double-double of his rookie campaign with nine points.
 
Desmond Mitchell-LaFlam led all scorers with 23 points and was the only Bobcat to end the night with a double-digit point total. It was just the third 20-plus point showing of the season for Georgia College who came into the contest sporting the league's top-rated scoring defense.
 
The visitors led 45-37 after Chaz Berry's 3-pointer with 13:22 to play, but Nigel Grant's short jumper on the other end of the court sparked the Braves on a 20-2 run that eventually gave them a 60-51 advantage just more than nine minutes later. The Bobcats climbed to within five points, 64-59, on a fastbreak layup by Isaac Thomas at the 1:46 mark, but could get no closer.
 
The game went back and forth for much of the first 10 minutes of the contest, but Mitchell-LaFlam's jumper with 9:37 left before the break signaled the first of six-straight points by the Bobcats who eventually took a 39-27 lead into the locker rooms. The halftime deficit was fueled by a four-minute stretch in the stanza that watched the Braves miss 10-straight shots from the field.
 
The Braves will take to the road again on Monday when they make the long trek to central Alabama to battle PBC West co-leader Montevallo (9-1, 3-0) in the second half of a 6:30 p.m. doubleheader inside Trustmark Arena.
 
UNCP will open up a three-game home stand on January 14 against Young Harris at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court.