FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 2-21-04

Men's College Basketball: AASU 74, USC Spartanburg 69

Release Courtesy of USC Spartanburg Sports Information

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Armstrong Atlantic State hit four free throws in the last 19 seconds and held USCS to just two points in the final minute to take a 74-69 victory over the Rifles in the G.B. Hodge Center Saturday afternoon.

Armstrong Atlantic State improves to 18-7 overall and 9-5 in the Peach Belt Conference. USCS falls to 12-13 overall and 5-9 in the league. USCS travels to Lander Wednesday night for a 7:30 tip-off in Greenwood, SC. Armstrong Atlantic State hosts North Florida Wednesday night at 7:30.

Daryl Williams led Armstrong Atlantic State with 19 points and 15 rebounds to go with four assists. His play throughout was the big difference in the game. Jason Sanders tallied 14 points for the Pirates, while Brian Bain and Bryan Taylor finished with 13 and 10 points, respectively.

C.J. Paul led USCS with 13 points and seven assists without committing a turnover. Kevin Harrington added 13 points, four assists, and five rebounds. Jay Free came off the bench with 11 points for the Rifles.

USCS grabbed an early 9-4 lead, but saw Armstrong fight back with a 6-0 run to take a 10-9 lead. The rest of the half saw USCS fight to take leads only to have the Pirates fight back to keep the game close.

After leading 27-22 with 3:31 to play before the intermission, USCS scored just four points the rest of the half. Tim Brewer sank two free throws with 44 seconds to play to give Armstrong a 32-31 lead it would carry into the intermission. Williams had 10 of his 19 points in the first half to lead the Pirates. Paul and Harrington each had six points for the Rifles.

USCS came out flat in the second half and Armstrong used it to its advantage in going on a 21-6 run over the first five minutes of the half to take a 53-37 lead. USCS, though, answered with a 9-0 run, capped by a Free three-pointer, to cut the Pirate lead to 53-46.

Armstrong took the lead back to 10 points on a free throw by Bain, but USCS slowly whittled away at the lead as the clock wound down. Eric Murrell’s old fashion three-point play cut the Armstrong Atlantic State lead to 67-65 with 3:13 to play.

Bain hit a three-pointer with 1:18 to play to give Armstrong a 70-67 lead and then hit a free throw with 19 seconds to give the Pirates a four-point edge. Paul converted a layup with six seconds to play to cut the Pirate lead to three points, but Sanders sank two free throws with and the Pirates held on for the win.

-Pirates-