UNCP hoops splits with Francis Marion

Jan. 23—FLORENCE, S.C. — The visiting and 10th-ranked UNC Pembroke men's basketball team was unable to shake off upset-minded Francis Marion amid a modest first-half shooting effort, but the Braves found their hot hand in the second half and used a 13-3 run in the closing minutes of the game to turn back the Patriots, 83-71, on Saturday evening inside the Smith University Center.

The result marked the 12th-straight win for the Black & Gold (19-1, 11-1 CC) who tacked up their 21st-straight regular season road victory in the process as well. It was the third-straight setback for the Patriots (10-7, 7-4) who have now dropped four-straight at home in the series with their I-95 rivals.

The Braves posted an uncharacteristic 35.3% clip from the field in the opening half, but kept themselves in the action with eight offensive rebounds that led to 10 second-chance points. The opening stanza showed five lead changes and six tie scores, including a 35-35 stalemate heading into the locker rooms. The Patriots were unable to hold a late lead in the first period, despite shooting 48 percent from the field, while also boasting a 12-for-17 clip from the free throw line.

UNCP turned up the volume on its shooting percentage in the second stanza, this time connecting on 18 of their 28 field goal attempts (.643), while also claiming a 19-10 advantage on the boards. The hosts claimed a short-lived lead, 38-35, following a 3-pointer from Tionne Rollins just 32 seconds into the second half, but UNCP knotted the score back up on Bradlee Haskell's triple 39 seconds later and never trailed after that. FMU pulled to within a lone point, 67-66, on a running layup by Alex Cox with 4:53 to play, but a hook shot from Cortez Marion-Holmes on the other end of the court sparked a 13-3 run by the visitors that spanned the next 3-1/2 minutes.

Sophomore Bradlee Haskell and redshirt freshman Cortez Marion-Holmes both registered a team-best 14 points against the Patriots. Marion-Holmes added four rebounds and a career-best four assists, while Haskell tallied three rebounds and a trio of assists.

Sophomore Nygell Vedier added 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting, and barely missed a double-double with nine rebounds as well. He also finished his night with three assists.

Redshirt sophomore Elijah Cobb turned in a monstrous defensive performance, finishing his outing with nine points, seven rebounds, four blocks, two steals and a pair of assists.

The Braves have now won 12-straight games since dropping an 89-76 home decision to Francis Marion back on November 30. Saturday's result also marked the 21st-straight regular season road win for the club.

UNCP improved to 52-36 all-time in the series with the Patriots, and have now 10 of the last 12 in the series with FMU, including four-straight triumphs in FMU's Smith University Center.

Head coach Drew Richards is now 49-8 (.860) in the midst of his second full season as skipper of the Black & Gold. The Braves were 3-3 amid a COVID-shortened 2020-21 campaign, and registered a 27-4 mark last season.

The Braves will begin a 3-game home stand on Wednesday when they take on Mount Olive (7-12, 5-6 CC) in the second half of a 5 p.m. doubleheader on Military Appreciation Night at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court.

Lady Braves fall to Patriots

The Francis Marion picked up 21 points from the free throw line and limited the UNC Pembroke women's basketball team to just two baskets in the third quarter, as the Patriots defeated the Braes 66-61 on Saturday afternoon inside the Smith University Center.

The setback for the Braves (12-7, 9-2 CC) snapped a nine game winning streak and marked the eighth straight loss when playing in Florence, S.C. The Patriots (11-6, 9-2 CC) extended their winning streak to nine games and improve to 5-2 when playing on their home court.

Lillian Flantos drained a jumper in the paint and started a 9-0 run to push the UNC Pembroke lead out to 12-6 with just under five minutes on the clock in the first quarter. Francis Marion cut its deficit back to 17-14 after a layup from Kiana Lee, but Hannah Russell's layup gave the Braves a 22-16 lead at the end of the quarter.

The hosts scored the first five points of the quarter to trim their deficit back to 22-21 after a running layup from Aniyah Oliver just a minute into the quarter. UNCP put together a 10-0 scoring run to extend its lead out to 34-22 after a trey from Hannah Russell with five minutes remaining in the half. The Braves limited the Patriots to just 21.4 percent shooting from the field, as UNC Pembroke held a 36-28 lead as the teams headed into the locker rooms.

A 10-0 FMU run put the Patriots out in front 43-42 with 2:50 on the clock. UNCP struggled to find the offensive rhythm shooting just 18.2 percent from the field, but scored the final three points of the quarter to hold a slight 45-42 lead heading into the final stanza.

An 8-2 UNC Pembroke run fueled by six points from Lillian Flantos put UNCP out in front 55-51 with just 4:35 left to play in regulation. Francis Marion responded with a 9-0 that gave the hosts a 60-55 lead with 44 seconds left to play. Francis Marion made good on 13-of-14 attempts from the charity stripe during the period to halt a UNCP comeback.

Kalaya Hall poured in 13 points highlighted by a 3-for-4 clip from the 3-point line. The newcomer also logged a team-best six assists and five rebounds.

Lillian Flantos added 12 points, six of which were in the fourth quarter. Flantos pulled down three rebounds and logged an assist and steal in 20 minutes of action.

Zaria Clark and Alcenia Purnell each registered 10 points. Clark finished the contest with a 4-for-7 performance from the charity stripe, while Purnell was 2-for-4 from the perimeter.

UNC Pembroke shot 42.9% from the field, which marked the sixth straight outing of shooting at least 40% from the field.

The Braves shot just nine free throws during Saturday's contest, which marked just the third time this season that UNCP has not shot double-digit free throws. Conversely, Francis Marion made 21-of-23 attempts from the charity stripe.

The setback marked the eight-straight loss for the Braves against the Patriots when playing in Florence, S.C.

The Braves will be back in action on Monday when they travel to Due West, S.C., to face Erskine (4-10, 2-8). Tipoff is set for 5 p.m. at Belk Arena.