Box Score AIKEN, S.C. – Rick Alderman led five Pacers in double figures and the nationally 19th-ranked University of South Carolina Aiken men's basketball team acquired an 81-74 Peach Belt Conference victory over Georgia Southwestern on Monday evening at the Convocation Center.
USC Aiken (14-3, 8-1 PBC) has now won six of its last seven outings. The Pacers are a perfect 11-0 at the Convocation Center currently.
The Pacers ended Monday's win over Georgia Southwestern (11-5, 2-5 PBC) shooting a scorching 54.5 percent (24-for-44) as a team. USC Aiken shot over 50 percent as a team in both the first and second half.
USC Aiken's high pressure defense held Georgia Southwestern to 46.2 percent (24-for-52) shooting as a team.
Both teams were strong from beyond the arc with USC Aiken shooting 42.9 percent (6-for-14) as a team. Georgia Southwestern knocked down 11 of its 22 (50 percent) 3-point attempts on Monday.
USC Aiken was equally as strong from the free throw line where they were 27-for-37 (73 percent). Georgia Southwestern connected upon 75 percent (15-for-20) of its shots from the charity stripe.
Both teams were turnover prone in the game, but USC Aiken was much more profitable on its return from the Hurricane miscues, as the Pacers scored 38 points off Georgia Southwestern's 26 turnovers in the game.
Alderman (Roanoke, Va./Concord) missed just one shot from the field on Monday, going 6-of-7. He was 5-for-6 from the free throw line. He ended his night with 17 points and four rebounds in total.
Ronald Zimmerman (Columbia, S.C./Spring Valley) nailed three 3-pointers in the Pacer win. Zimmerman, who was a perfect 5-for-5 from the free throw line, ended his night with 16 points.
Re'mon Nelson (Columbus, Ohio/Canal Winchester) guided the Pacer attack with six assists to go along with three steals and 15 total points.
Chase Holmes (Chesnee, S.C./Presbyterian) and Joel Gierbolini (Carolina, Puerto Rico/Long Island) were the final Pacers in double figures with each posting 10. Gierbolini just missed on a double-double as he also had eight boards to go along with three assists and two blocks.
Two Georgia Southwestern players accounted for 54 of the team's 74 total points in the game.
Evan Mobley of Georgia Southwestern led all players in the game with 30 points. Colin Sloter was right behind him with 24 points.
USC Aiken and Georgia Southwestern entered the final four minutes of the first half tied at 28-28. The Pacers would close the half on a 12-5 run to hold a seven-point lead at the halftime break.
The Pacers would lead by as many as 16 in the second half before Georgia Southwestern mounted a late charge that saw them trail by just four with 29 seconds left in the game.
They would get no closer with the Pacers securing the seven-point victory. The two teams posted 41 points each in the second frame.
The Pacers will next hit the road for a battle of the current top teams in the Peach Belt Conference East and West Divisions. USC Aiken's showdown with Montevallo is slated to tip off at 8:30 p.m. EST on Thursday, Jan. 26 in Montevallo, Ala.
