Box Score

AIKEN, S.C. – USC Aiken went on a 20-2 run early in the second half to pull away and defeat Flagler College 98-67 in a Peach Belt Conference men's basketball game Saturday afternoon at the Convocation Center.

USCA won its fourth game in a row and improved to 5-1 overall and 1-0 in the Peach Belt. Flagler suffered its second consecutive loss and dropped to 6-3 overall and 0-2 in conference play.

Sterling Council led all scorers with 23 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the field and he made all seven of his free throws. Re'mon Nelson came off the bench to add 18 points, four assists and four steals while Jeremiah Pojah recorded a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds. Maurice Hubbard tacked on 10 points and five rebounds for the Pacers.

The Pacers shot 52.9% (18-34) from the field in the second half and made all 16 shots from the free throw line in the second stanza. USCA made 29-of-37 from the free throw line.

Matt Clark (St. Augustine, Fla., St. Augustine HS) led Flagler with 22 points, 15 of which came in the first half. Chad July (Fort White, Fla., Bridgton (Maine) Academy) recorded his seventh double-double of the season with 15 points and a game-high 17 rebounds. Addison Smith (West Palm Beach, Fla., College of Central Florida) tallied 11 points and Ante Gospic (Zadar, Croatia, Polk State College) contributed 10 points.

After shooting 55.2% (16-29) in the first half, Flagler was held to 31.3% (10-32) shooting from the field in the second half.

Trailing 43-41 at the half, a Gospic layup tied the game to open the second half. Chase Holmes started the 20-2 run by the Pacers with a put-back of a miss shot by Pojah. USCA made six field goals and all six of its free throws in the run. The Pacers also grabbed six offensive rebounds. Flagler made 1-of-9 from the field and turned the ball over five times which led to eight USC Aiken points.

The Saints would pull to within 14 (67-53) after Smith made the second of two free throws with 8:44 left. USC Aiken followed with a 24-9 run over the next 6:24 to squelch any thoughts of a rally by Flagler.

Flagler will host Augusta State University in a Peach Belt Conference game on Wednesday (Dec. 14) at 7:30 p.m.

Flagler vs USC Aiken
12/10/11 3:30 p.m. at Aiken, S.C. (Convocation Center)
At Aiken, S.C. (Convocation Center)

USC AIKEN 98, FLAGLER 67

FLAGLER (6-3, 0-2 PBC)
Matt Clark 8-14 1-2 22; Chad July 6-11 3-8 15; Addison Smith 4-7 2-4 11;
Ante Gospic 4-11 2-2 10; Jarrod Branco 3-9 0-0 7; Ryan Barnes 1-5 0-0 2;
Justin Stokes 0-2 0-2 0; Jordan Warner 0-0 0-0 0; Desmond Gibson 0-2 0-0 0;
Elijah Hayes 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 26-61 8-18 67.

USC AIKEN (5-1, 1-0 PBC)
Sterling Council 7-10 7-7 23; Re'mon Nelson 6-9 6-6 18; Jeremiah Pojah 3-10
7-8 13; Chase Holmes 4-10 2-2 11; Maurice Hubbard 5-8 0-0 10; Jesse Seilern
3-6 1-1 8; Terrance Dent 2-7 1-2 7; Ronald Zimmerman 1-1 2-5 5; Rick
Alderman 0-2 3-4 3; Arlen Wiley 0-1 0-0 0; Joel Gierbolini 0-1 0-2 0;
Marquett Carr 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 31-65 29-37 98.

Flagler.......................   41   26  -   67
USC Aiken.....................   43   55  -   98

3-point goals--Flagler 7-17 (Matt Clark 5-7; Jarrod Branco 1-3; Addison
Smith 1-2; Ryan Barnes 0-4; Ante Gospic 0-1), USC Aiken 7-16 (Terrance Dent
2-7; Sterling Council 2-2; Ronald Zimmerman 1-1; Jesse Seilern 1-3; Chase
Holmes 1-2; Jeremiah Pojah 0-1). Fouled out--Flagler-None, USC Aiken-Rick
Alderman. Rebounds--Flagler 39 (Chad July 17), USC Aiken 38 (Jeremiah Pojah
12). Assists--Flagler 13 (Jarrod Branco 4), USC Aiken 16 (Re'mon Nelson 4).
Total fouls--Flagler 25, USC Aiken 14. Technical fouls--Flagler-None, USC
Aiken-TEAM. A-1024