2017-18 PBC YEARBOOK
Men’s Basketball
UNCP WINS PBC MEN’S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT
MORROW, Ga. – The second-seeded and 24th-ranked UNC Pembroke men’s basketball team
shot better than 56 percent from the field in the second half and took the lead for good on David
Strother’s 3-pointer with 9:22 left as the Braves claimed their second-straight Peach Belt Conference
Tournament championship with a 70-60 win over top-seeded and 25th-ranked Clayton State on
Sunday afternoon.
The Braves (26-5) became the fourth team in league history to claim back-to-back PBC Tournament
crowns, but just the second program to win both the regular season and tournament crowns in
consecutive seasons. The setback snapped a 14-game win streak for the Lakers (23-6) who had not
tasted defeat since an 85-65 loss in Pembroke on January 20.
PBC Tournament MVP Nigel Grant scored 18 of his game-high 26 points in the first half to lead the
Black & Gold, while fellow all-tournament team selection Akia Pruitt contributed 17 points, seven
boards and one block to the cause. Strother finished out his first championship game appearance
with two big 3-pointers down the stretch, while adding five rebounds and a trio of assists.
Nathan Powell turned in a team-best 16 points for the Lakers who saw their nine-game home win
streak come to an end as well. Aubrey McRae added a dozen points, while Jacarl Owens tallied 10.
The lead changed hands seven times in the first 10 minutes of the second half, but Strother’s
3-pointer following a turnover by Jaylen Taylor with 9:38 remaining signaled the start of a 10-1 run
for the Braves that turned the momentum for good. Clayton State made it a one-possession contest,
57-54, on two free throws by Owen at the 5:14 mark, but Brandon Watts nailed a 3-pointer on the
other end of the court and UNCP kept the hosts at arm’s length the rest of the way out.
43