The 24th-ranked University of Montevallo men’s basketball team (16-2, 6-2 PBC) used a 51-point second half to down the visiting Braves from UNC Pembroke (6-13, 2-8 PBC), 75-57. The Falcons trailed 27-24 at halftime but outscored the Braves 51-30 in the second half to capture the victory. The big men for Montevallo dominated the paint as Gerald January and Cecil Coleman combined for 39 of the Falcons 75 points. January had 20 points and nine boards while Coleman had 19 points and eight boards.

January was a perfect 7-for-7 from the floor and 6-of-7 from the charity stripe. Coleman was a perfect 7-for-7 from the free throw line. Senior Tauras Dortch had 11 points and six boards while Mark Plaza had 10 points, eight boards, five assists and four steals. Freddy Little and Ryan Westbrooks each chipped in seven points.

UM forced 24 UNCP turnovers including 15 in the second half which led to 29 points for the Falcons.

UM opened the game with two quick layups from Coleman to take a 4-0 lead. The Braves then went on a 11-2 run to open up a 11-6 lead which they held for the rest of the first half. UM was able to cut the lead to just one point on three different occasions but was unable to tie or take the lead the rest of the first half.

Down 27-24 at halftime the Falcons came out in the second half with a 10-4 run to capture the lead. UNCP quickly recovered and retook the lead just two minutes later. The two teams exchanged the lead back-and-forth for the middle part of the second half with UM controlling most of the time. With 6:28 remaining in the game and the Falcons up 55-53, UM used a 20-4 run to close out the half and take a 75-57 victory at home.

The No. 24 Falcons will return to action Sunday, Jan. 31 at 3:30 p.m. as they host Francis Marion University. The Patriots are 15-3 overall and 7-2 in PBC play.

WOMEN

UNC-Pembroke 63, Montevallo 59

The University of Montevallo women’s basketball team (10-8, 3-5 PBC) battled with UNC Pembroke (11-8, 5-5 PBC) the entire game as the two teams switched leads six times and never gave up a double-digit lead the entire contest. Pembroke used some key free throws down the stretch to take the 63-59 victory. The Falcons were paced by senior Alicia Lewis, who had 20 points and four assists. She hit six three pointers in the game which was more than the entire UNC Pembroke squad.

Juniors Carrie Parrott and Shan Jones each had nine points. Parrott added seven rebounds while Jones grabbed six. Junior Tiaren Young had eight points and six boards while senior Manal Cali had six points and six boards.

The Lady Braves took advantage of UM’s turnovers as they scored 16 points off of Montevallo’s 12 turnovers. They also outscored UM 18-10 in second chance points despite the two teams having the same number of offensive rebounds.

Both teams took awhile to get their offense rolling as neither team reached double-digits until the 11:14 mark of the first half. UM took its first lead with 6:35 left in the half as Jones hit a three-pointer to put the Falcons ahead 16-15. After a pair of UNCP free throws the Falcons began a 7-0 run capped off by a three-pointer from Young. The Lady Braves responded immediately with a 12-2 run to close out the half. The Falcons headed to the locker room down 29-25.

Jones opened up the second half with four quick points to tie the game at 29. After trading blows for the next five minutes the Falcons began a 9-0 run to take a 44-38 lead with 11:43 remaining. UM held that lead for the next six minutes until the Lady Braves began a 13-2 run that spanned almost five minutes and left the Falcons down 61-56 with just 18 seconds to play. A three-pointer by Lewis cut the Lady Braves lead to just two. After UNCP missed the front-end of a one-and-one the Falcons grabbed the rebound and called timeout.

On the next possession a Falcons player was tripped up and called for traveling which gave the Lady Braves a second chance at the free throw line. UNCP converted on both free throws to end the game 63-59.

The Falcons have a short turnaround as they begin preparation for their Sunday match-up with nationally-ranked Francis Marion University. The 17th-ranked Patriots are 16-2 overall and 8-1 in PBC play.