FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - 11-28-01

Courtesy Francis Marion University Sports Information

Balanced Pirate Attack Sinks Patriot Men 78-69

FLORENCE, SC - Senior guard Mick Jordan led five Armstrong Atlantic State University players in double figures with 18 points as the Pirates began defense of their Peach Belt Conference regular-season crown with a 78-69 win over Francis Marion University, Wednesday evening (Nov. 28).

Jordan hit three of four shots from behind the three-point arc en route to his game-high total. Senior forward Willard Winn tallied 17 points for AASU (1-2), while Donta Humphries scored 12 and Bart Westgeest and Lamarr Chears each added 10 points. Westgeest hauled down a game-high 11 rebounds.

FMU freshman Louis McCullough led the Patriots (1-4) with 13 points, while junior guard John Scott scored a career-high 12 points in his first career start. Rod Stevenson chipped in 11 points, while Jon Houston added 11 points, eight assists, and five rebounds.

A McCullough three-pointer gave Francis Marion an early 10-3 lead, but AASU pieced together a 14-3 run that erased the Patriot advantage. AASU broke a 21-21 deadlock with a 17-6 spurt that eventually lead to a 45-34 halftime lead.

The margin would grow to 16 points at 51-35 early in the second stanza, but Francis Marion trimmed the margin to six points (54-48) with a 13-3 run.

A trey by Humphries produced a 67-54 Pirate lead with 4:47 remaining and AASU made six of six free throws in the final 2:01 to seal the win.

Francis Marion travels to Milledgeville, Ga., to play Georgia College & State University, Saturday at 7:30 p.m.