Box Score
SAVANNAH, Ga. – Behind 21 points from Byron Faison and a second straight double-double from Kevin Willis the University of South Carolina Aiken men's basketball team picked up another huge Peach Belt Conference East Division victory with a 70-58 win over Armstrong Atlantic State at Alumni Arena Saturday evening.
USC Aiken's victory on Saturday evening was important in that it moved the Pacers into second place in the PBC East with a 9-8 record in league action.
The top two teams in each division of the PBC earn a home contest in the quarterfinals of the 2011 PBC Tournament on Tuesday, March 1. Entering its PBC finale against Lander at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 23, USC Aiken's win over Armstrong Atlantic State (14-10, 8-8 PBC) on Saturday places the Pacers in position of hosting a quarterfinal game at the Convocation Center for the second consecutive year.
USC Aiken (15-9, 9-8 PBC) will enter its home finale against Lander playing some of its best basketball of the 2010-11 season. USC Aiken has won two straight and four of its last six outings.
The Pirates scored the first four points of the game to take a very early 4-0 lead, but USC Aiken went on a 27-9 run over the next almost 13 minutes to own a 27-13 lead with 6:41 to play in the first stanza.
USC Aiken would be unable to keep its lead in double digits with Armstrong Atlantic State cutting the Pacer lead to six at 31-25 by the halftime break.
The two teams would play close for the first 10 minutes of the second half. USC Aiken was ahead by as many as nine points at 35-26 with 17:54 remaining, but with 9:20 left in the last half of play the Pacer lead was just two at 47-45.
Once again the Pacers looked as if they may get some separation over the next few minutes, but despite going up by as many as seven the Pacer lead was still just two points at 58-56 after an Armstrong Atlantic State three-point play with 3:33 left in the game.
On USC Aiken's next offensive possession Faison was able to connect on a lay-up. He was fouled in the act of making the lay-up and he promptly knocked down the ensuing free throw to pull the Pacers ahead by five points at 61-56 with just a little over three minutes on the game clock.
The Pacers would not look back from there, pulling away down the stretch for the 12-point victory.
USC Aiken concluded Saturday's victory shooting a scorching 55.1 percent (27 for 49) as a team. Armstrong Atlantic State shot 43.4 percent (23 for 53) in its loss.
Faison (Sumter, S.C./Crestwood) was 8 for 15 from the field en route to the game-high 21 points. He knocked down four of his six 3-point attempts in the game. He also had six rebounds.
Willis' second straight double-double came on 12 rebounds and 11 points. Willis (Atlanta, Ga./Kaskaskia) also had a career-best five assists in the game.
Alvin Brown (Fort Washington, Md./James Madison) and Re'mon Nelson (Canal Winchester, Ohio/Canal Winchester) were the final Pacers in double digits. Brown ended his night with 12 points, five rebounds and two steals and a block, while Nelson had 10 points to go along with three assists and a steal.
Brett Goodwell led a trio of Pirates in double figures in the loss to the Pacers. Goodwell finished with 15 total points.
USC Aiken's Peach Belt Conference closer against Lander at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 23 will serve as Senior Night for the Pacers.
The contest is the second game of a Peach Belt Conference men's and women's basketball doubleheader at the Convocation Center as the 15th-ranked Pacer women will battle the No. 2 Lander women prior to the men's game at 5:30 p.m.
Both games of the doubleheader will be able to be followed live on USC Aiken's official athletic website at www.PacerSports.com.
