MOUNT OLIVE – The 21^st-ranked UNC Pembroke men's basketball team led by as many as 13 points early in the second half, but unbeaten Barton put together a late 17-4 run and got a clutch 3-pointer from Zach Grant with 29 seconds left to fuel a 77-72 upset win over the Braves on Friday evening at the 53^rd Annual Pickle Classic.
 
It was the first loss of the season for the Braves (2-1) who had captured 12 of their last 15 outings away from Pembroke heading into the weekend. Barton (4-0) picked up its third victory of the season over a Peach Belt Conference squad (Augusta, Georgia Southwestern) and have now tacked up consecutive series wins over the Black & Gold for the first time since 2004.
 

THE BASICS

SCORE: Barton 77, UNC Pembroke 72 RECORDS: UNC Pembroke 2-1; Barton 4-0 LOCATION: Mount Olive, N.C. (Kornegay Arena)

HOW IT HAPPENED

1ST HALF

The Braves shot better than 42 percent from the field in the opening half, and led by as many as 12 points, 39-27, after a tip-in from junior Carson Mounce with 5:46 left before the break. Barton strung together seven-straight points after that bucket to pull to within five points, 39-34, but did not record a point in the final 3-1/2 minutes of the stanza. A 3-pointer from Jamal Bryant, as well as a layup from James Murray-Boyles, down the stretch gave the Black & Gold a comfortable 44-34 advantage heading into the locker rooms.

2ND HALF

UNCP pushed its lead out to 13 points, 49-36, on a 3-pointer from Tyrell Kirk at the 17:44 mark, and still led by double digits, 59-48, following Micah Kinsey's layup just more than five minutes later. Bobby Stenborg's running layup with 11:43 remaining, however, ignited the Bulldogs on a game-changing 17-4 run that eventually gave them a 65-63 lead at the 6:09 mark. Another Kinsey layup with 2:08 left knotted the score up at 70 points apiece, but UNCP missed its final three field goal attempts of the contest. Zach Grant's 3-pointer with 29 seconds left proved to be the winning bucket for the Bulldogs.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

+ Sophomore David Strother scored 12 points on 5-of-10 shooting to lead the individual effort for the Braves on the night. He also added four rebounds, two blocks, two steals and a pair of assists. + Junior Akia Pruitt and sophomore Tyrell Kirk both registered double-digit scoring totals as well. Pruitt turned in 11 points, six rebounds and three blocks. Kirk added 10 points, four rebounds, two assists, two steals and two blocks. + Micaeh Kinsey tallied four points, five assists, four rebounds and four steals. It is the 13th time in 68 career games played that Kinsey has recorded five or more assists. + Akia Pruitt's block total (3) marked the 29th time in 68 career games played that the Winston-Salem native has tallied three or more blocks.

NOTABLES

+ The Braves are now 43-28 all-time in the series with Barton, but have now dropped two-straight matchups with the Bulldogs. Barton has now posted consecutive series victories for the first time since capturing victories against UNCP during the 2000-01 and 2004-05 campaigns. + UNCP recorded 11 blocks on the night – the fifth time in the last 33 games that the Black & Gold has posted 10 or more blocks. It is the first time the Black & Gold has achieved that feat since turning in 11 swats against USC Aiken in February.

UP NEXT

UNCP will wrap up a season-opening four-game stretch away from home on Saturday when they face Mount Olive (1-2) in the final game of the 53rd Annual Pickle Classic. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. inside Kornegay Arena.

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JOIN THE BRAVES CLUB

Fans can help support the UNC Pembroke Men's Basketball program by joining the Braves Club. To find out more information about the Braves Club, visit UNCPBraves.com/BravesClub or email braves.club@uncp.edu.