Pikeville, Ky. – The curtains fell on an instant classic just past 9:30 pm on Thursday evening, as UPIKE men's basketball knocked down No. 15 Georgetown at Appalachian Wireless Arena. Behind UPIKE men's basketball's newest 1,000 point club member, Korbin Spencer, the Bears pulled through with a 81-73 victory.

Writing that the game was a tale of two halves would be an understatement, as UPIKE improved every aspect of their game throughout the final 20:00. In the first half, Georgetown outscored the Bears 35-28, holding the Bears to 29% from the floor and just 3-14 from beyond the arc. In the second half the Bears outscored the Tigers 53-38, shooting just under 60% and hitting 7-14 from deep. The Bears took their first lead of the contest with 8:58 to go in the game, and never gave it back.

Spencer played one of the best games of his career, knocking down 29 points on 10-18 shooting from the floor. The junior hit 6-12 from deep in the contest, and four came at critical moments in the second half. With 0:16 seconds to go in the contest, Spencer made good on the second free throw on a technical foul trip, bringing his career total to exactly 1,000.

Keian Worrix continued to display his dominance defensively, having perhaps one of the most important second half performances of the season. Worrix finished with 13 points, three rebounds, three assists, and a pair of steals. The Pikeville native earned himself 11 opportunities from the line, hitting eight shots to lead the Bears.

Teddy Parham Jr. finished with 13 points and three rebounds, hitting 5-8 from the free throw line. Jacob Brown led the Bears with six rebounds, adding 11 points on a clean 5-6 clip from the field.

Georgetown blasted off to a 5-0 lead out of the gate, busting a three and a layup on back to back possessions. Jacob Brown put the Bears on the board at the 17:40 mark with a jumper as the Bears trailed by three. The two teams combined for six turnovers over the first 10 minutes, but 8-15 shooting in the span from the Tigers built an 18-11 lead with 10:11 to go.

After trailing by as much as 10, UPIKE gathered momentum offensively to mount a run which brought them within five. The physical nature of the contest put the Bears in the bonus throughout the final five minutes of the half as the Bears capitalized with six points from the line. Georgetown continued to barrage shots on the other end, maintaining an 8-0 run heading into the final two minutes. The Bears caught momentum in the final stretch, as Devin Collins scored back to back fast break buckets to make it 35-28 Georgetown headed into the locker room.

At the 15:00 mark of the second half, a Spencer jumper put the Bears within four to make it 39-35. UPIKE's offense remained solid but the high-powered Georgetown offense continued to keep the Tigers ahead. Georgetown stretched the lead to nine but a stop on the next three possessions allowed Spencer to drain a pair of threes followed by a Brown layup which put UPIKE within one point.

A full-blown shootout ensued as Georgetown answered with a contested jumper and a three. By the 10:34 mark, the Tigers led 49-46. It was Parham Jr. who would tie the game for the first time with just over nine minutes to play, splashing a three to lock it up at 49-49. Spencer was near unstoppable, draining a long three with 8:19 to go to send Appalachian Wireless Arena into a frenzy. After a Worrix steal on the ensuing Tigers' possession, Spencer sent a dime up the middle to Parham Jr. who finished to give the Bears a 56-51 lead.

UPIKE was in control for the following minutes which featured an impressive stretch of play from Worrix who dominated the Tigers offensively, adding a pair of free throws and a tough driving layup. With 2:30 to play, the Bears held a 10-point, 67-57 lead.

The Tigers continued to battle, making an 8-5 run headed into the final minute. Georgetown managed to hit five shots in the final 1:19, but UPIKE capitalized on foul shots down the stretch, draining 7-10 from the line.

The win improves the Bears to 11-7 on the season and 7-5 in conference play. With the win, the Bears move ahead of Tennessee Southern to take fifth in the MSC standings.

UPIKE men's basketball returns to action on Saturday, January 14^th as they head to Williamsburg, Ky. for a 3:00 PM tip-off against University of the Cumberlands.