PEMBROKE – The 19^th-ranked UNC Pembroke men's basketball team got 32 points from its bench and used a late 10-2 run to pull away for good as the Braves ran their home win streak out to eight games with an 82-76 victory over Columbus State on Saturday afternoon at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court.
 
It was the 15^th win in the last 17 outings for the Braves (21-5, 15-3 PBC) who need just one more win this season to clinch at least a share of their third Peach Belt Conference title in the last four years. Columbus State (15-11, 10-8) has now come away empty-handed on four of its last five trips to Pembroke.
 

THE BASICS

SCORE: #19 UNC Pembroke 82, Columbus State 76 RECORDS: #19 UNC Pembroke (21-5, 15-3 PBC); Columbus State (15-11, 10-8 PBC) LOCATION: Pembroke, N.C. (Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court)

HOW IT HAPPENED

1ST HALF

The Braves converted on 60 percent of their field goal attempts in the opening half, but the Cougars utilized six 3-pointers to keep themselves in the game. The visitors took their largest lead of the half, 17-10, on Anthony Moore's layup at the 13:47 mark, but Spencer Levi's layup just more than two minutes later sparked the hosts on an 11-3 run that helped them take the lead with 5:50 left before the break. UNCP eventually took a 38-32 advantage into the locker rooms.

2ND HALF

The Cougars opened the second half with a 6-4 run and eventually grabbed a six-point lead, 48-42, after Anthony Moore's old-fashioned 3-point play with 16:06 left. The lead changed hands three times over the next eight minutes, but a pair of free throws from David Strother at the 6:58 mark would give the Black & Gold the lead for good. The Braves led by as many as nine points, 77-68, following Jordan Ratliffe's free throw with 54 seconds left before taking their foot off of the gas.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

+ Junior David Strother became the 37th member of UNCP's 1,000-Point Club with a free throw at the 6:58 mark of the second half. The Lumberton native finished with a dozen points, five rebounds and one assist. + Senior Akia Pruitt turned in 14 points on 7-of-11 shooting on Saturday, and added eight rebounds. He needs just 19 more boards this season to reach the 1,000-rebound plateau. + Jordan Ratliffe tallied 10 points, three rebounds and a pair of assists. + Micah Kinsey came off of the bench to register nine points and six assists in 31 minutes of action. He also posted two steals.

NOTABLES

+ The Braves have now won eight-straight home games dating back to a mid-December victory over Clayton State. + UNCP has now captured 10 of the last 17 matchups in the series with Columbus State, including four of the last five matchups in Pembroke. + The Braves need to win one more game this season to clinch at least a share of their third Peach Belt Conference regular season title in the last four years. UNCP shared the PBC regular season crown in both the 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons.

UP NEXT

UNCP will close out the road portion of its 2019-20 regular season schedule on Wednesday when they make the short trip to Florence, S.C., to take on Francis Marion (4-21, 3-15 PBC) in the back half of a 5:30 p.m. doubleheader inside the Smith University Center. The Patriots dropped an 83-76 road contest to Lander on Saturday.

STAY CONNECTED

Follow UNCP Men's Basketball on Twitter and Instagram and "Like" UNCP Men's Basketball on Facebook.

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.