AIKEN, S.C. – The University of South Carolina Aiken men's basketball team notched a 75-65 win over Columbus State Saturday afternoon in a league contest.

The Pacers are now 5-2 on the season, including 4-1 in league play. The Cougars fall to 2-4 overall and in league competition.

Head coach Mark Vanderslice's team was led by Gus Rowland's game-high 16 points. He also registered five assists, five rebounds and five steals in the win. Tyler Johnson registered 10 points and two thefts. Latreavin Black narrowly missed a double-double with nine points and nine boards.

Jakobi Pearson accounted for nine points and four rebounds. Tehree Horn and Darius Bell each had eight points in the victory. Bell also snagged seven boards.  

Rowland gave the home squad a 17-12 edge at the 10:39 mark on a three-point shot. Moments later, he found Damontez Oliver for a three-ball to make it 20-13. The Cougars tied it at 23-23, but USC Aiken went on a 14-7 spurt to end the half. With just over a second to go in the stanza, Jalen McCoy received the ball, took a dribble and fired up a 28-foot shot that banked in, giving the Pacer a 37-30 advantage at the break.

After building a 61-46 lead, USC Aiken saw its advantage dwindle to six at 66-60. However, Bell connected on a shot for an eight-point margin. Leading 70-65, Rowland found Bell for a thunderous dunk. Moments later, Johnson recorded a steal and laid it up and in for a nine-point lead with 1:29 to go in the contest. Outstanding defense by USC Aiken would not allow the visitors to record another point, ensuring the victory.

For the game, USC Aiken hit 27-of-61 from the floor (44.3 percent), including nine-of-26 from the three-point line (34.6 percent). Vanderslice's squad held the lead for over 80 percent of the contest. USC Aiken accounted for 32 points in the paint.  

The Pacers return to action Wednesday when they host Augusta. Live stats and video will be available at PacerSports.com.