SPARTANBURG, S.C. — Chowan shot 57.1% from the field and made 33-of-48 free throw attempts to defeat the UNC Pembroke men’s basketball team 93-87 in the semifinals of the Conference Carolinas Tournament Semifinals on Saturday afternoon inside the Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium.
The top-seeded Braves (21-8) shot 44.8% from the field and made 26-of-33 attempts from the charity stripe. The Hawks (18-14) ultimately lost to Young Harris in the finals of the Conference Carolinas Tournament on Sunday.
UNCP did not earn an at-large berth to the Division-II NCAA Tournament, ending its season.
The opening half of Saturday’s game saw Chowan take an early lead with Damerius Summers scoring a jumper at 19:37. Moe Bangura quickly responded with a dunk to tie the game at 2-2. Chowan’s Eric Gordon Jr. and Markell Hollis both connected on 3-point shots to help their team maintain a slim advantage. Javonte Waverly’s layup at 8:06, followed by a free throw and a bucket from Demar Anderson cut the UNCP deficit back to 29-26 with 7:35 on the clock. However, Chowan outscored UNC Pembroke 19-12 in the final minutes to hold a 48-38 lead at the end of the first half.
UNC Pembroke trimmed its deficit back to 55-50 with a layup from Javonte Waverly at the 15:39 mark of the second half, but Chowan would respond and extend its deficit out to 60-50 minutes later. UNCP put together a 16-7 surge capped off with fastbreak layup from Moe Bangura to knot the score at 66 apiece, but the Hawks scored the next nine points to regain the lead. Nygell Verdier knocked down a triple with 38 seconds left in regulation to cut the UNCP deficit back to 88-85, but Chowan scored six of the final seven points to secure the victory.
Bangura finished with a career and game-high 27 points and went 9-for-15 from the field. The senior pulled down two rebounds and had one assist in 22 minutes of work.
Waverly added 17 points and went 5-for-11 from the floor, while pulling down one rebound. Verdier flirted with a double-double with 12 points and eight rebounds.
UNCP never held a lead during Saturday’s contest. The Braves finished with 38 points in the paint.