Pikeville, KY – UPIKE men's basketball wrapped up their two-game home stretch Saturday evening, falling to Bethel 97-92. The Bears mounted an impressive fourth quarter comeback but fell short on the finishing effort at the final buzzer.
UPIKE ultimately suffered from a slow first half that allowed the Wildcats to control the game, outscoring the Bears 50-48 in the first 20 minutes. UPIKE regrouped incredibly well especially in the final 10 minutes of the contest, ultimately outscoring the Wildcats 54-47 in the second half.
The stat sheet shows the surge from coach Compton's unit in the second half, with the team shooting 61% compared to their 37% performance in the first half. Overall the Bears hit 48% from the field, adding 12 threes on 28 attempts for 42% from deep.
Malcolm Green and
Christian Sweazie shared the top scoring spot for UPIKE, both dropping 19 points. Green showcased his athleticism in his 36 minutes of action, fighting through defensive pressure for tough buckets in big moments and wrangling five key rebounds. Sweazie inflicted his damage from deep splashing 5 threes and going an impressive 6-7 from the field.
The first half saw the Bears keep pace with the Wildcats as the two teams played to within three points of each other for the entirety of the first five minutes. With 11:10 to go in the half, Sweazie pulled up a deep three to tie the game for the fifth time, making it 16-16. Bethel caught fire from the floor, mounting an 11-2 run over the course of the next two minutes and led 27-18 with 8:35 on the clock.
The Wildcats grew their lead to as much as 18 as UPIKE struggled to hit shots from beyond the arc. Over the last three minutes of the half, UPIKE found life, mounting a 10-4 run to end the period trialing 50-38.
UPIKE opened the half with a three from
Jacob Brown assisted by
Darius Love, answered on the next possession by an and-one bucket on the next Bethel possession. Bethel grew their lead from that point, scoring 19 points in the next five minutes With 14:21 to play it was 69-50 Bethel.
The Bears fought to take a bite out of the Wildcat lead but despite a 7-0 stretch, stayed trailing thanks in part to consistent offense from Bethel. With just under 10 minutes to go, Sweazie and Love hit buckets on back-to-back possessions as the Bears worked to build momentum. On the very next possession,
Carl Campbell forced a steal and the Bears quickly got it to
Jamir Simpson in the paint who finished as the Bears trailed by just 11 making it 81-70. Defensive pressure forced mistakes from the Wildcats as UPIKE looked poised for a late-game comeback.
The Bears suffered from a pair of turnovers, giving Bethel to shift momentum back on their side, scoring two quick buckets to maintain their double-digit lead. With 5:00 to go, Bethel held am 87-74 lead before Sweazie hit deep threes on back-to-back possessions to bring the Bears within single digits headed into the final four minutes. UPIKE accelerated the pace of the game and forced fouls from Bethel and capitalizing from the line in the coming possessions, suddenly knocking on the door of the Wildcat's lead trailing 91-86 inside the final three and a half minutes.
It was a three-point ballgame with 2:00 to go until Sweazie hit a pair of free throws to put the Bears within just one point after trailing by as much as 20. Bethel scored yet another three but were answered by a beautiful move to the rack from Simpson, making it 94-92 with 0:44 remaining. Despite great defense from the Bears, the Wildcats splashed a three on the next possession that all but sealed the deal. UPIKE came up short in their last possession, falling by a final score of 97-92.
UPIKE men's basketball hits the road for their next matchup with Lindsey Wilson slated for Thursday, January 14th. Tip-off between the Bears and Blue Raiders is set for 8:00 PM.
