CLINTON, S.C.- The Presbyterian College men's basketball team handed Liberty its 12th-straight loss on Friday night at the Templeton Center, 69-61.
PC snaps a four-game skid to improve to 8-17 overall and 4-8 in the Big South with a contest on Thursday night at UNC Asheville. The Flames fall to 6-19 overall and 0-12 in the conference and welcome Campbell on Tuesday night.
The teams played a back-and-forth first half that saw 12 lead changes and the score tied on four occasions. PC scored seven unanswered points to take its largest lead of the half with five minutes to play 30-22, but the Flames cut it to three, as PC took a 34-31 halftime lead. DeSean Murray (Stanley, N.C.) led the Blue Hose with 11 first-half points, while Markus Terry (Johns Creek, Ga.) had 10 points and a team-leading 4 defensive boards. Andrew Smith led the Flames in the first half with eight points and four rebounds.
The Flames opened the first half outscoring the Blue Hose 8-4 to take its first lead since the nine-minute mark of the first half, a 39-38 lead with 17:26 on the clock in the second half. The teams played close over the next few minutes, but Ruben Arroyo-Felix (Richmond, Va.) hit back-to-back treys and Terry hit one from the top of the key to give PC an eight point lead, 53-45, with 8:30 to play.
Liberty didn't go away though, as they scored seven unanswered points to cut their deficit to only one point, 55-54 with just under five minutes to play. The Blue Hose outscored the Flames 14-7 over the final few minutes of the contest and the visitors made just one of their last 11 shots to give the hosts an eight point victory.
Murray tallied a team-high 21 points and nine rebounds to lead the Blue Hose to victory. Terry finished the game with 14 points, and William Truss (Vestavia Hills, Ala.) came up with 10 points. Will Adams (Johnson City, Tenn.) came off the bench for some valuable minutes and a pair of threes, while Ed Drew (Suffolk, Va.) and Arroyo-Felix finished the game with six points as well.
Smith led the Flames with 16 points and nine rebounds, while Ryan Kemrite and Theo Johnson had 14 and 13 points each, respectfully. Jordan Dembley dished out seven assists for the visitors.
The Flames put together a 42% (22-for-52) from the field performance, making 10-of-11 foul shots. PC was 48% (26-for-54) from the floor and 10-for 21 from the free throw line.
