AIKEN, S.C. – The USCA men's basketball team recorded a hard fought 81-79 victory in the home opener Sunday against Catawba.

The Pacers are now 2-0 on the season while the Catawba Indians fall to 1-1.

The squad led 5-2 on a three-ball from Rhyjon Blackwell off a pass from Davion Cunningham. The back-and-forth contest saw the Catawba Indians take a 14-10 edge before Mason Grant nailed a jumper. His next bucket tied the contest at the 12:31 mark.

Leading 17-16, Simeon German slammed home a dunk at the 9:35 mark. A three-point bucket from Cam Perkins extended the advantage to six, 22-16, before Perkins converted a three-point play for a 25-16 margin.

A three-point play from German made it 36-27 with 3:16 to go. However, the visitors cut the deficit to just one with 1:12 to play in the half. German grabbed a pass near midcourt, took two dribbles and banked home a runner for a 41-38 advantage at the break.

The back-and-forth affair saw USCA take a 66-65 lead at the 9:03 mark. Cunningham hit a lay-up off a pass from Blackwell before Perkins converted an inside shot. A lay-up from Jalen McCoy with 6:24 to play pushed the advantage to 72-65.

Holding a 78-77 advantage with 2:11 to play, Cunningham hit a step-back jumper. However, the visitors responded and cut it to one with 59 ticks on the clock. After a foul by the visitors, McCoy hit one-of-two from the charity stripe with 26 seconds remaining for a two-point lead.

The Pacers forced a missed three-point attempt and McCoy secured the rebound with a second to play. He missed the free throw but picked up the rebound to seal the victory.  

Head coach Mark Vanderslice's team was led by McCoy's 18-point, four-rebound effort. German added 11 points and seven rebounds while Grant and Perkins accounted for 10 points apiece.      

For the game, USCA hit 31-of-58 (53.4 percent) from the floor. The team had 54 points in the paint and netted 27 points off 23 turnovers. Vanderslice's team also totaled 18 points on the break.

The Pacers return to action Thursday when they host Washington Adventist at 7 p.m. Live stats and video will be available at PacerSports.com.