GREENWOOD – The Lander Bearcats used a 27-6 run midway through the game and cruised to a 76-57 Peach Belt Conference victory over Francis Marion Wednesday night at Horne Arena.
Lander improved to 7-10 overall and 4-6 in the Peach Beach. The Patriots fell to 8-8, 2-7.
Scottie Smith and Houston Wright paced the Bearcats with 16 points apiece. Smith fell one point shy of his career high set versus USC Aiken March 1, 2006. Zach Evans scored 13 points, Brenton Harris added 10 points and 12 rebounds, and Dane Sparrow had six assists.
Sam Smith led Francis Marion with 14 points while Ziyadah Carter added 10 points and nine rebounds.
Lander made 27 of 68 shots from the floor (40 percent), 12 of 18 free throws (67 percent), and 10 of 34 from behind the 3-point line (29 percent). The Patriots hit 23 of 59 shots from the floor (39 percent), eight of 14 free throws (57 percent), and only three of 19 from behind the arc (16 percent). The Bearcats had a 45-38 edge on the boards and committed only 11 turnovers to Francis Marion's 13.
Wright hit a pair of 3-pointers as Lander opened the second half on an 8-2 run, building a 49-24 lead with 18:45 left and completing a 27-6 run. The Patriots scored seven unanswered points to pull within 51-33.
Ford “Scooter” Lawrence hit a 3-pointer and Harris scored twice as Lander's lead ballooned back to 23 points, 58-35, with 11:20 left. Tyler Pitt hit two technical foul free throws to extend Lander's lead to 60-36 at the 8:09 mark.
Garry Jones converted a three-point play off a steal, giving the Bearcats a 70-40 lead with 4:55 to go. Lander's largest lead would be 31 points before the Patriots closed the game on a 13-1 run.
Smith scored 10 points in the first five-plus minutes of the game, including eight Lander points in a row to stake the Bearcats to a 15-11 lead with 14:20 left. Wright converted a three-point play to give Lander its first double-digit lead at 28-18 with 9:13 to go.
Travis Allison's 3-pointer extended the lead to 13 and an Evans 3-pointer put the Bearcats up 36-21 with 4:01 left. Evans would score Lander's final five points of the first half with a 3-pointer and two free throws for a 41-23 halftime lead as the Bearcats closed the half on a 19-5 run. Smith (14) and Evans (13) combined for 27 of Lander's 41 points, making 10 of 13 shots.
