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PEMBROKE, N.C. – The Columbus State University men's basketball team returned from a 15-day layoff with a big time performance, downing 21
st-ranked UNC Pembroke 70-67 on Sunday. The Peach Belt Conference victory was played in Pembroke, N.C.
JaCori Payne led all scorers with 24 points on 7-of-11 shooting, while
Marcus Dixon pulled down a monster double-double of 15 points and 18 rebounds, including the game-sealing board in the closing seconds.
"I'm really proud of our guys," head coach
Robert Moore said. "UNC Pembroke is a very talented basketball team and it's really tough to win in their gym.
"We didn't have our best day offensively, but the guys kept battling and showed a lot of toughness to get a big road win."
Things started well for Columbus State (2-3, 2-0) as Payne capped a 7-0 run to give the Cougars an early 9-4 advantage.
UNC Pembroke (5-3, 1-1) answered right back though, and held the lead for much of the first half.
Trailing 27-24, Payne scored four straight points to push the Cougars back in front, and
John Lambert knocked down a corner 3 to stretch the margin to four. CSU would take a 33-31 lead into the halftime break.
Payne started the second quickly, scoring the first seven points to open up a nine-point edge for the Cougars, but the Braves had the answer again. After UNCP pulled back to within five, Columbus State began to edge away, stretching the lead to double figures and then using another 7-0 stretch to earn its largest lead of the game at 57-42 with under 12 minutes remaining.
CSU weathered the first UNC Pembroke storm and led by 11, 67-56, at the five-minute mark, but the Braves had one final push in them. An 11-2 run cut the margin down to just two with less than two minutes to play, and the Cougars held three consecutive UNCP possessions with a chance to tie or take the lead.
Dixon grabbed the rebound on two of the three misses down the stretch and helped ice the game with a free throw in the closing seconds.
CSU shot just 39.7 percent (27-for-68) from the field and made 5-of-22 3-pointers, but its best work came on the defensive end.
The Cougars limited the Braves to 31 percent shooting and 4-for-27 from the 3-point line.
Columbus State will wrap up the pre-Christmas portion of its schedule with a road tilt at Francis Marion on Tuesday. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. in Florence, S.C.
