Pacers too tall for Braves

Here's a few further comments I have from the USC Aiken/UNCP Men's basketball contest that didn't make The Robesonian's print edition Thursday.

After winning two of its last three Peach Belt Conference games, UNCP returned home Wednesday for a battle with nationally-ranked USC Aiken. The 14th-ranked Pacers proceeded to click on all cylinders offensively after tip-off, scoring 32 points in transition and 40 in the paint.

After jumping out to a 24-point halftime lead, USC Aiken limited UNCP to just 18 field goals in an 87-60 rout in front of 1,700 fans, the largest crowd at the Jones Center this season on "Pack the House" night.

For Braves fans, the losses continue to mount against teams from the Peach Belt. You know it's a long night when your best defender, Cortez Brown, fouls out with 15 minutes to play in the second half. That's right, 15 minutes. The Braves were beaten down the floor and were beaten on the boards. USC Aiken's front court towered over UNCP, who's tallest player on the floor was 6-6 forward Brandon Thomas. Mismatches in the paint caused problems most of the first half for the Braves as they fell behind 46-22 at intermission.

One positive I noticed for the Braves was first-year coach Ben Miller's ability to never stop instructing. With the Braves down 36 points midway through the second half, Miller called a timeout to try and settle the troops, a chore easier said than done for recent Pembroke basketball.

"Coach just told us to ignore the scoreboard," UNCP forward David Moore said. "He said to just play in five minutes increments and try to win those. We tried to put the score out of our minds."

That really says alot about the players' respect for coach Miller. The latest words of encouragement coming from a senior transfer who was one of many Braves bruised and battered inside against the Pacers. The old addage "keep your head up" still has life it seems. The Peach Belt Conference's leading scorer, Chris Commons scored 25 points to pace USC Aiken. The 6-8 senior displayed an array of spinning low-post moves and an occasional look off the glass. After each basket, Commons would come down court laughing at the Braves bench.

It was that kind of night on the hardwood for the Black and Gold.

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