PEMBROKE – The UNC Pembroke men's and women's basketball teams will open up a three-game road trip on Saturday when the Braves pack up their show and head to west central Georgia for a rematch with Peach Belt Conference foe Columbus State. Tipoff is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. inside CSU's Frank G. Lumpkin Center.

Fans unable to make the trip to Columbus can follow the games for free via a live audio stream on the UNCP Sports Network with Trevor Williams handling the play-by-play duties. Both matchups can also be followed via live video and statistics links provided by CSU.

 

UNC Pembroke Women (4-7, 2-5 PBC) at Columbus State (7-4, 5-2 PBC)
Date & Tip Time	Saturday, January 13 at 1:30 p.m. ET
Location	Columbus, Ga. | Frank G. Lumpkin Center
Live Statistics	SIDEARM SPORTS
Audio	UNCP Sports Network
Video	Facebook Live
Peach Belt Conference	Women's Basketball

WOMEN'S NOTES

• The Lady Braves (4-7, 2-5 PBC) snapped a three-game losing skid with a win over Augusta on Wednesday evening at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court. UNCP led by as many as 16 in the fourth quarter and held off a late Jaguar charge to claim a 61-59 victory. The win was the 275th overall for head coach John Haskins and 170 of those wins have come at the helm of the Lady Braves.
• All four of UNCP's victories have come in Pembroke this season and the Braves are averaging 72.7 points at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court compared to just 54.0 points per game on the road. The Black & Gold has outscored opponents by 13 points in six home games, while being outscored by 69 points in five road tilts.
• Five Braves are averaging at least 8.2 points per game at home this season, while only Nyla Allen averages at least that mark per game on the road. The biggest disparity comes from guard Tee Graham, who scores 11.7 points per game in Pembroke and just 4.0 away from home.
• Allen leads all Braves with 13.0 points per game and has averaged 16.9 per tilt in the last seven outings. The senior poured in a career-high 23 points on 10-of-20 shooting in the win against Augusta and added five steals, which is also a career best.
• Alecia Hardy and Graham have each produced five double-digit scoring performances in 11 games this season and both guards tallied a new career high in the Jan. 6 setback to Georgia College. Hardy set a new standard with 15 points, while Graham dropped 17 to set a new career mark.
• After scoring 10 points through the first five games of the season, senior Brandi Robinson has chipped in 10 points in two of the last four outings and grabbed at least six rebounds in three-straight contests.
• UNCP and Columbus have met five 36 times since the Braves joined the PBC prior to the 1992-93 season with the Cougars holding a 30-6 lead in the series. Columbus State has claimed the last six meetings and 10 of the last 11, including a 99-79 victory in Pembroke earlier this season. UNCP's one win since 2009 was a 66-48 triumph in Columbus on March 1, 2012.

ABOUT COLUMBUS STATE

• The Cougars (7-4, 5-2 PBC) have won two-straight games after a 70-62 defeat of Georgia Southwestern on Wednesday night. Columbus State outscored the Hurricanes 29-6 in the second quarter to overcome a 56-41 GSW advantage in quarters one, three and four.
• After averaging 83.3 points through their first six games, including three 90+ point outings, the Cougars have been held to a 74.4 scoring average in their last five contests. 
• The Cougars are averaging a PBC-best 79.3 points per game and get up a league-best 72.3 shots per tilt. Columbus State also leads the conference in 3-pointers made per game (7.3), free throws attempted per game (25.3), offensive rebounds per game (21.5), total rebounds per game (49.8) and rebounding margin (10.8).
• Junior Tatiana Wayne is averaging a PBC-best 20.9 points per game and has eclipsed the 20-point mark five times and the 30-point plateau twice in 11 games. She scored a season-high 37 points in a 119-91 setback to Carson-Newman on Nov. 26. 
• Armstrong State transfer Machala Raymonville ranks fifth in the league with 16.4 points per tilt, while Tatum Jarvis chips in 12.3 per outing. Chrisalyn Boston grabs a team-high 8.2 boards per game, which ranks eighth in the PBC.
• Saturday's contest with the Braves ends a two-game road trip for the Cougars, who return home for the first time since a Jan. 3 loss to North Georgia. Columbus State is 3-1 at the Frank G. Lumpkin Center this season and has not lost more than one home game since a 13-2 mark in the 2013-14 season. The Cougars are 61-4 in Columbus in the last five seasons. 

 

UNC Pembroke Men (10-3, 6-1 PBC) at Columbus State (3-7, 3-4 PBC)
Date & Tip Time	Saturday, January 13 at 3:30 p.m. ET
Location	Columbus, Ga. | Frank G. Lumpkin Center
Live Statistics	SIDEARM SPORTS
Audio	UNCP Sports Network
Video	Facebook Live
Peach Belt Conference	Men's Basketball

 
 
MEN'S NOTES

• The Braves (10-3, 6-1) used a smothering defense to stretch their win streak out to five games with a 68-62 victory over league nemesis Augusta on Wednesday at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court. The Braves matched a season-high with 11 blocks in that triumph, while also holding the Jaguars to season-low 34.2 percent shooting.
• Columbus State's 70-67 victory on December 17 in Pembroke is the last time that the Braves have tasted defeat, while the Cougars have registered a 1-4 record since that win at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court.
• UNCP will ride a six-game win streak in Peach Belt Conference road games into Saturday's contest, and has won four-straight games in the state of Georgia dating back to a 77-72 win over Augusta in February.
• Defense has reigned for the Black & Gold during its current five-game win streak. UNCP has held its last five opponents to 72.0 points per game and a combined 37.2 percent shooting effort from the field. The Braves have forced 14.8 turnovers per game over that stretch as well, while also posting 9.0 steals and 4.9 blocks an outing.
• Five players have averaged double-digit scoring during the current five-game win streak, including Brandon Watts who has put up 18.4 points per game on 48.4 percent field goal shooting. Fellow senior Nigel Grant has posted 14.6 points and 7.8 rebounds per game over the stretch, while James Murray-Boyles has registered 12.4 points per game despite logging just one start.
• The Black & Gold has trailed at least once in 11 of its 13 outings this season, including eight victories. UNCP never trailed in its 91-67 win over Catawba on November 11, nor its 80-74 victory at North Georgia in late December.
• The Braves are 8-32 all-time against the Cougars in a series that dates all the way back to the 1992-93 season – UNCP's first year as both a member of NCAA Division II and the Peach Belt Conference. UNCP is just 2-15 on the road in the series, and will look to snap a four-game road losing streak in the series on Saturday.
• Watts needs just 14 more points this season to reach the 1,500-point plateau for his career. If he accomplishes that feat, he will become just the 11^th player in the 78-year history of the program to do so. Quamain Rose became the latest Brave to join that club when he wrapped up his storied career last season with 1,579 points.
• In the midst of his 10th season at the helm of the Black & Gold in 2017-18, Ben Miller needs just eight more wins to match former Pembroke State legend Lacey Gane (1965-75) atop the program's all-time wins list. Miller has led the Braves to a 161-118 (.577) record in 9+ seasons as head coach.
  
  ABOUT COLUMBUS STATE
• The Cougars (3-7, 3-4 PBC) have now dropped four of their last five contests after Wednesday evening's 83-72 road loss to Georgia Southwestern. The Hurricanes, who led by as many as 17 points with 4:53 to play, shot 55.6 percent from the field in the triumph and did not trail after the 15:35 mark in the opening half.
• Columbus State's last five opponents have combined to score 84.0 points per game and shoot 54.1 percent from the field. That stretch includes a 95-point, 70.8-percent (34-for-48) shooting effort by North Georgia in a 95-80 loss for CSU on January 3.
• Senior Jacori Payne has registered a team-best 20.1 points per game (2^nd PBC) so far this season, thanks to 51.8 percent field goal shooting. Senior Marcus Dixon turns in 12.9 points and 10.4 rebounds per game and is the only player in the league that is currently averaging a double-double. Payne (24 points) and Dixon (15 points, 18 rebounds) led the Cougars in last month's win over UNCP.
• The Cougars rank ninth among league leaders in both 3-pointers made (7.5) and attempted (21.9) per game this season, but have managed just 75.7 points per game (9^th PBC). CSU's 10 opponents this season have combined to shoot an eye-popping 50.8 percent from the field, while scoring nearly 81 points an outing.
• Despite a 1-2 record at home this season, the Cougars have registered a 37-8 (.822) record inside the Frank G. Lumpkin Center over the last 3+ seasons, including a 27-8 (.771) clip against Peach Belt Conference opponents. Columbus State has registered 12 home wins in each of the last three seasons.