GEORGETOWN, Ky. – Hopefully the nets will cool off enough to be used when the MSC/SSAC Challenge resumes on Saturday because the 14th-ranked University of Pikeville men's basketball team caught fire in the second half for a 92-69 win over Bethel (Tenn.).
At halftime it was tied at 32 all, but then the Bears decided to shoot 69 percent from the field in the final 20 minutes, hitting 20 of 29 shots, including six from long distance. All told, UPIKE (6-0) outscored Bethel 60-37 in the second half as the Wildcats shot just 32 percent for the game.
Both teams hit at a 34 percent clip in the first half, but the Bears flipped the script to finish at 51.7 percent while also leading on the glass 41-38, making eight more free throws, dishing out nine more assists and connecting on three extra 3-pointers.
Six players reached double figures scoring for UPIKE, led by Darrion Leslie with a double-double of 17 points and 11 rebounds. Rze Culbreath added 14 points and six assists, Jordan Perry, Basil Thompson and Jayvian Delacruz finished with 12 points each and Rodney Hawkins scored 11.
Thompson went 3 for 4 from behind the arc, Culbreath made 5 of 6 free throws and Hawkins swatted away a game-high two blocks.
Chase Nappier hit three 3s to lead Bethel (2-2) with 17 points and Isaac Edmondson chipped in with 15.
Bethel led by as many as five points early on, but a 15-4 UPIKE run got it ahead by 10 at the 11:14 mark on a 3 by Chase Parsley. Not to be outdone, the Wildcats immediately answered with a 15-3 spree of their own to retake the lead at 26-24.
After a back-and-forth finish to the final six minutes, the teams went into halftime tied 32-32.
The Wildcats scored the first basket of the second half, but that brief lead was their last of the game as UPIKE took control with a 15-3 run. Bethel didn't recover this time, instead watching the lead grow to 20 points 10 minutes later on a 3 by Thompson.
Bethel scored the next seven points to try to get things going with a mini run, but it was quickly stopped and the Bears pulled back in front by as many as 24 points at 88-64 with 1:31 to play.
UP NEXT
The Bears close the MSC/SSAC Challenge against No. T25 Martin Methodist at 1 p.m. ET.
-UPIKE-
