PEMBROKE – Visiting Georgia College shot 51.1 percent from the field and made a nine-point halftime lead stand up as the Bobcats held off a furious late-game rally by the UNC Pembroke men's basketball team to steal a 76-74 win over the Braves on Saturday afternoon at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court.
 
The setback marked the second-straight loss for the Braves (2-3, 2-2 PBC) who have now dropped consecutive home games for the first time since the 2015-16 season. It was the first road win of the season for Georgia College (4-2, 4-2 PBC) who have now come away with wins on consecutive trips to Pembroke.
 

THE BASICS

SCORE: Georgia College 76, UNC Pembroke 74 RECORDS: UNC Pembroke (2-3, 2-2 PBC); Georgia College (4-2, 4-2 PBC) LOCATION: Pembroke, N.C. (Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court)

HOW IT HAPPENED

1ST HALF

Dewan Lesesne's layup at the 12:23 mark gave the Braves a 16-9 advantage, but Wesley Simpson's 3-pointer on the other end of the court sparked the Bobcats on a 13-2 run that eventually gave them a 22-18 lead nearly four minutes later. The hosts made it a one-point game, 24-23, on an old-fashioned 3-point play with seven minutes left before the intermission, but the visitors scored the game's next five points and eventually built a 38-29 advantage heading into the locker rooms. The Black & Gold shot just 34.4 percent (11-for-32) from the field in the opening stanza, as compared to a 60 percent (15-for-25) success rate by the Bobcats.

2ND HALF

The hosts opened the second half with a 12-2 run and took a short-lived lead, 41-40, on a layup from Cortez Marion-Holmes just more than five minutes into the period. The lead swapped hands twice over the next four minutes of action before two free throws from Wesley Simpson at the 10:34 mark signaled the start of six-straight points for the Bobcats that gave them the lead for good. Simson's 3-pointer with 1:57 left padded the visitor lead out to 69-61, but a chess match down the stretch put UNCP in a position to force overtime. Jordan Ratliffe's 2.5 seconds remaining made it a one-point game, 75-74, but Brandon Thomas hit the front end of a two-shot foul on the other end of the court to provide the final.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

+ Junior Jordan Ratliffe scored 14 of his team-best 20 points in the second half of Saturday's contest. Ratliffe was 4-for-10 from the field in the second half, including a 4-for-8 mark from the perimeter. + Freshman Trenton McIntyre chipped in a career-best 19 points on 6-of-11 field goal shooting, while also adding three assists and a trio of rebounds. He scored 14 points on 4-of-7 shooting in the second half alone. + Senior Spencer Levi notched his third double-double performance in the last four games, scoring 10 points while also recording 11 rebounds. + Redshirt freshman Cortez Marion-Holmes added 16 points, 11 in the second half, before fouling out with 25 seconds left. He also turned in eight rebounds as well.

NOTABLES

+ UNCP posted a 37-33 advantage on the glass in Saturday's contest with the Bobcats, and have now out-rebounded all five of its opponents this season. The Braves have now out-rebounded 25 of their last 26 opponents dating back to the ninth game (Dec. 19, 2019) of the 2019-20 season. + The Braves have now lost consecutive home games for the first time since Jan. 27-Feb. 3, 2016, when they dropped consecutive outings with Augusta and USC Aiken. UNCP stopped the skid the following game with a 78-72 win over Young Harris on February 6. + Georgia College has posted wins in consecutive trips to Pembroke, including a 67-64 win over the Braves on Dec. 15, 2019. The last team to win consecutive games at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court was Augusta who captured wins in Pembroke in both the 2015-16 and 2016-17 campaigns.

UP NEXT

The Braves will open up a three-game road trip on Wednesday when they make the short trip to Florence, S.C., to take on Francis Marion (3-3, 3-3 PBC) in the back half of a 5:30 p.m. doubleheader inside the Smith University Center.

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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.