BRISTOL, Tenn. – The King University men's basketball team fell behind in the second half Wednesday, but were able to rally for an 83-75 win over Converse to close the regular season.
Mikhail Pocknett finished with 31 points, going 11-of-17 from the field in the win.
THE BASICS
FINAL: King 83, Converse 75
LOCATION: Student Center Complex; Bristol, Tenn.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
- After scoring the first five points, the Valkyries raced out to an early 12-6 lead before Pocknett scored seven straight points, including a three and a pair of layups to give King a 13-12 lead.
- The teams then traded the lead back-and-forth until Jordan Akal hit a pair of free throws, putting King in front 28-27 with 3:48 left in the half.
- Pocknett then scored four of the next five points, stretching the Tornado lead to 32-28 with under two minutes left.
- Seth Cullen added a free throw with 54 seconds left, giving King a 33-28 lead heading into halftime.
Second Half
- The King lead reached 43-35 in the first five minutes, before Converse rallied to take a 49-46 lead with 11:58 remaining.
- The Valkyries were able to hold onto the lead for the next five minutes, eventually reaching 68-60 with 6:23 left on the clock.
- King then went on a 15-2 scoring run, with Pocknett scoring 11 of the points as King took a 75-70 lead with 2:04 left in regulation.
- Converse was able to get the score back to within 78-75 with one minute left, but King scored the final five points, including a thunderous dunk by Dylan Gory that effectively sealed the Tornado victory.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Pocknett's 31 points led all players, and comes just two points shy of his career-high of 33 points. He also had seven rebounds, five of which came on the offensive glass.
- Jalen Royster scored 14 points, while Cullen led the Tornado in rebounding with 10, including nine defensive rebounds.
- Akal finished with eight rebounds, all of which came on the defensive glass.
FOR THE FOES
- Isaac Ahnstrand led Converse with 21 points on three rebounds, with Earl Burgess III scoring 16 points and Joel Pullen adding 14.
- Burgess III and Jay Mitchell both had seven rebounds for Converse.
UP NEXT
- The Tornado are the five seed in the 2025 Atlantic Casualty Conference Carolinas tournament, and will host the first and second rounds. Sunday evening, 11-seed Erskine will face eight-seed Lees-McRae, with the winner facing King Monday night with a trip to Spartanburg on the line.
