FLORENCE, S.C. – The King University men's basketball team outscored Francis Marion University 58-52 in the second half Saturday, but narrowly fell 88-82 on the road.
Mikhail Pocknett recorded another double-double, finishing with 20 points and 12 rebounds.
Jordan Akal also had 20 points.
THE BASICS
FINAL: Francis Marion 88, King 82
LOCATION: Smith University Center; Florence, S.C.
RECORDS: King 9-17, 5-12 Conference Carolinas; Francis Marion 13-12, 11-6 Conference Carolinas
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
- Satchel Love hit a three early to put King in front with 17:04 left.
- The Patriots then scored the next 16 points, pulling into the lead 16-3.
- After a pair of free throws by Akal and a FMU jumper, Akal hit a pair of threes, lowering the lead to 20-11 with 10:16 left.
- Amarius Beasley drained a three with 6:27 to play, which was followed by Pocknett grabbing a rebound and hitting the layup to pull the Tornado to within 23-19.
- Francis Marion ended the half on a 13-5 scoring run, including the final nine points to take a 36-24 lead into halftime.
Second Half
- The Patriots scored the first six points of the half, stretching their lead to 42-24.
- Francis Marion was leading 79-57 with 3:52 left when the Tornado started their comeback attempt.
- Pocknett scored eight of the next 10 points, pulling King to within 81-65 with just over two minutes remaining.
- Akal drained a three with 38 seconds left, bringing the Tornado to within 84-75.
- The lead continued to shrink in the final 30 seconds, with Almando Cyrius hitting a three with just nine seconds to play, but the Patriots hit a pair of free throws with seven seconds remaining to hang on for the win.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Akal and Pocknett both finished with 20 points, with Pocknett pulling 12 rebounds and Akal going a perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line.
- Cam George scored 10 points, with Love adding nine on seven rebounds.
FOR THE FOES
- Bryce Beamer led all scorers, posting 23 points on 11 rebounds, one of two Patriots to record a double-double.
- Ibrahim Wattara had the other double-double, scoring 14 points and grabbing 11 rebounds in the win.
UP NEXT
- King will close the regular season on Wednesday when they host rival Lees-McRae College at 7:30 p.m.
- Francis Marion will play at Belmont Abbey College on Wednesday night as well.
