PIKEVILLE, Ky. – UPIKE men's basketball got a much-needed win on Saturday with a 98-60 rout of Carver College.

Thanks to a 13-point second half scoring outburst, freshman Korbin Spencer led all scorers with a career-high 20 points. He also grabbed three rebounds and had two assists.

Luke Layhew also picked up his sixth double-double of the season with 13 points and 10 rebounds.

It took the Bears a few minutes to get settled in, but an early 17-3 run gave UPIKE a double-digit lead and never looked back from there.

UPIKE shot 58 percent in the first half en route to building a 24-point halftime lead. The Bears shot 55 percent overall in the contest, the sixth-best percentage this season.

Pikeville continued to pile on in the second half and would up with five players in double figures. Jordan Perry finished just behind Spencer with 18 points, but also grabbed seven rebounds and had five assists.

Da'Rell Domineck (14) and JJ Ramey (10) were the other double-digit scorers for the Bears.

The Bears also got a confidence boost in one of its weakest areas by making 17 of 22 free throws, its best percentage of the season thus far.

While Carver College had an alright afternoon shooting (43 percent), the scoring opportunities were few and far between after UPIKE forced 27 turnovers for the fourth time this season. Those 27 takeaways resulted in 29 points for the Bears.

UP NEXT

After the one-game departure from conference play, UPIKE begins its second round of Mid-South Conference matchups on Thursday when they travel to take on Thomas More in Crestview Hills, Ky. Tip-off from the Cincinnati suburb is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET.

-UPIKE-