McKenzie, TN – The University of Pikeville men's basketball team beat the Bethel University Wildcats Saturday afternoon in their regular season finale on the road, 86-80. It was a close game throughout, with seven lead changes, five ties and neither team leading by more than 10 in the game.

Jacob Brown tied a season-high with 19 points in the contest, while Christian Sweazie (13) and Taevon Horton (11) both joined him in double-figures. Horton also grabbed a team-high seven rebounds while Korbin Spencer led with two assists. The win ends the Bears regular season with an overall record of 16-12 and 9-11 in the Mid-South Conference.

How It Happened
Bethel led by six early on and led for nearly the first ten minutes of the game before UPIKE tied things up at 17-17. After trailing 19-18, the Bears used a 13-4 run to take a 32-22 lead with 6:07 to play in the first half. Spencer scored all eight of his points during this stretch. The Wildcats would fight back though and tied the game at 38-38 after a 16-6 flurry with just 1:17 to play in the first half. A Malik Malone free throw and Sweazie three-pointer would give UPIKE the 42-38 halftime lead.

The two teams traded the lead throughout the first nine minutes of the second half before Bethel took the lead at 58-55 with 10:55 remaining and held it for the next several minutes. With the score 67-66 Wildcats, a Horton jumper gave UPIKE the advantage at 68-67.

Neither team would seize the momentum until it was 72-72 with 4:35 to play. Brown scored four points in a quick 6-0 Bears run to take a 78-72 advantage. They wouldn't relinquish the lead for the remainder of the game. Bethel cut it to 82-78 with under a minute to go, but the Bears hit a few free throws and made a layup to take the 86-80 victory.

Inside The Box Score
UPIKE attempted their third most free-throws this season with 30 and their second most in MSC play. They made their third most this season with 22.

The Bears won the bench points battle with 41 to Bethel's 19, showing their impressive depth. UPIKE shot 56.9% from the field in the game, which is their best performance in a conference game this season by over 3%. Their 46.2% clip from downtown is their second-best performance in the conference this season.

What's Up Next
UPIKE will play Campbellsville University in the opening round of the MSC Tournament Tuesday afternoon at the UPIKE Gym at 6:00 p.m.