AMERICUS, Ga. – The University of South Carolina Aiken men's basketball team lost a 67-62 contest at Georgia Southwestern in a Peach Belt Conference contest Saturday evening.

The Pacers are now 3-12 overall and 1-7 against league foes. The Hurricanes improve to 7-8 on the year and 3-5 against conference competition.

Head coach Mark Vanderslice's team was led by Tavares Sledge's game-high 21 points. He also snagged a team-best eight rebounds while dishing out a game-best four assists in 38 minutes of work. Jevon Patton contributed 18 points while Arbry Butler tallied 13 points, five rebounds and a game-best three blocks before fouling out.

Keith Belfield and Glen Campbell each hit for five points in the contest.

For the game, USC Aiken connected on 23-of-54 shots from the floor (42.6 percent). The squad canned six-of-19 three-point shots (31.6 percent) while netting 10-of-14 charity shots (71.4 percent).

The team dished out 13 assists and forced the Hurricanes into 20 turnovers. Each squad registered 202 points off turnovers and the Pacers held a 9-8 edge in second-chance points. Vanderslice's team maintained a 28-24 margin in points in the paint. There were five ties and five lead changes in the contest.

Sledge started off the game with a lay-up off a pass from Patton. Tied at 2-2, Sledge nailed a three-point shot for a 5-2 edge at the 18:05 mark. Two minutes later, Sledge found Butler for a thunderous dunk. Sledge corralled a defensive rebound and promptly canned a bucket from downtown for a 10-2 margin five minutes into the game.

Butler netted four straight points off passes from Gavin Stephenson and Hendrix Emu, keeping the Pacers' lead at seven, 14-7. After a 9-0 run by the Hurricanes, Sledge's jumper tied the game at 16-16. USC Aiken held a 23-21 lead after a three-ball by Sledge, but the home team managed to take a 30-25 score into intermission.

Trailing 54-39 with 8:02 to play, Vanderslice's squad put forth an outstanding rally to get within striking distance. Campbell hit a free throw and followed it up with a lay-up on the ensuing possession, slicing the deficit to eight at 54-46 with 5:54 to play. Georgia Southwestern pushed the margin back to 13, but USC Aiken was relentless.

Sledge started a 10-0 spurt with a pair of free throws at the 3:36 mark. Butler converted an old-fashioned three-point play and after a turnover, Belfield drilled a three-pointer, cutting the deficit to five at 59-54. After a free throw by the Hurricanes, Butler's lay-up made it 60-56. Another two charity tosses by Sledge cut it to a pair with 52 seconds to go, but it was as close as USC Aiken could get.

Forced to foul in the closing seconds, the Hurricanes made two free throws for the final score.

The Pacers return to action Monday when they host Montevallo at 3:30 p.m. Live stats, video and audio will be available at PacerSports.com.