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Elijah Cobb 112722
61
Winner UNC Pembroke UNCP 7-0
58
Virginia State VSU 4-2
Winner
UNC Pembroke UNCP
7-0
61
Final
58
Virginia State VSU
4-2
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
UNC Pembroke UNCP 23 38 61
Virginia State VSU 33 25 58

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | Todd Anderson, Associate AD/Strategic Initiatives

No. 9 Men’s Basketball Uses Late Three To Sink Virginia State

PETERSBURG, Va. – The 9th-ranked UNC Pembroke men's basketball team rallied all the way back from a 12-point deficit early in the first half, and then used K.J. Walker's 3-pointer with 1.1 seconds left to top Virginia State, 61-58, on Sunday evening in the final game of the VSU Thanksgiving Classic.
 
The result helped the Braves (7-0) stretch their win streak in regular season road contests out to 14 games, while also giving the Black & Gold a 7-0 start to a season for just the fifth time in the 83-year history of the program. The setback snapped a five-game home win streak for the Trojans (4-1) who registered a 40-point win over Carolina University on Saturday.
 
THE BASICS
SCORE: UNC Pembroke 61, Virginia State 58
RECORDS: UNC Pembroke 7-0; Virginia State 4-2
LOCATION: Petersburg, Va. (VSU Multipurpose Center)
HOW IT HAPPENED
1ST HALF
UNC Pembroke turned the ball over 12 times in the opening half, but kept itself in the contest with a 17-13 edge in the rebounding column, including five offensive boards. The Braves took an early 7-6 lead on Elijah Cobb's hook shot just less than three minutes in, but Virginia State rattled off 12-straight points to forge an 18-7 advantage 4-1/2 minutes later. UNCP pulled to within six points, 20-14, following a free throw from Cortez Marion-Holmes near the midway point, but the Trojans responded by tacking up the next six points to push their lead back out to double digits. The hosts eventually carried a 33-23 lead into the break.
2ND HALF
Tremere Brown's jumpshot at the 16:58 mark pushed Virginia State's advantage out to 42-30, but the Braves responded with a 14-3 run that allowed them to climb within three points, 45-44, nearly six minutes later. JaJuan Carr threw up five-straight points to give the Black & Gold its first lead of the second half, 55-54, with three minutes left to play, and then connected on a short jumper at the 1:45 mark to give the visitors a 58-56 edge. Terrence Hunter-Whitfield made good on a transition layup with 26 seconds left to even the game up, but K.J. Walker's 3-pointer with 1.1 seconds left handed the Braves the lead for good.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
+ Newcomer Elijah Cobb came off of the bench to score a season-best 14 points on 7-of-12 shooting to pace the Braves, while also adding eight rebounds, two steals and a block as well.
+ Freshman JaJuan Carr tallied 13 points, including five in the last three minutes of regulation, on 4-of-7 shooting, as well as a 5-for-6 clip from the charity stripe.
+ Redshirt freshman Cortez Marion-Holmes finished his night with five points, but matched a team-high with eight rebounds. Redshirt senior K.J. Walker tallied nine points, three assists and a pair of rebounds.
NOTABLES
+ UNCP moved to 4-0 this season in games decided by three points or less. A 74-66 overtime win over Newberry in the season opener is not included in that tally.
+ The 2022-23 Braves are just the fifth squad in school history to start a campaign with seven consecutive victories, and the first to accomplish that feat since the 2014-15 version of the Black & Gold. The 2013=14 Braves started their season with eight-straight wins.
+ UNCP has now captured 14-straight regular season road games dating back to last season. The last road loss for the program was an 82-72 decision at Emmanuel on Nov. 23, 2021.
UP NEXT
UNCP will open up a short two-game home stand on Wednesday when they suit up to battle Conference Carolinas rival in the Battle of I-95 presented by Lumbee Guaranty Bank. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court. Get your tickets ahead of time by visiting UNCPBraves.com/Tickets.
STAY CONNECTED
Follow UNCP Men's Basketball on Twitter and Instagram and "Like" UNCP Men's Basketball on Facebook.
BACK THE BRAVES
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.
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