GREENWOOD – Lander's Dermaine Smith and David Pruett made a combined 16 of 20 shots from the floor, and 11 Bearcats scored as they defeated Mars Hill 103-80 Monday night at Horne Arena.

Lander improved to 4-1 with the non-conference victory. The Lions fell to 2-4.

No Bearcats played more than 24 minutes as the reserves all got plenty of playing time.

Lander shot 57 percent from the floor (42 of 74 shots made) and dominated the boards out-rebounding Mars Hill 61-23. The Bearcats also had 26 assists on their 42 made baskets. Lander was shooting 66 percent well into the second half.

Dermaine Smith led the Bearcats with 20 points on 10-of-13 shooting from the floor, and also had seven rebounds and two blocked shots in 20 minutes of action.

Pruett made six of seven shots and finished with 17 points, nine rebounds and five assists in 23 minutes. Corey Wright added 16 points for Lander on seven of 11 shooting and a game-high eight assists in 24 minutes.

Bearcats center Darius Carrier was the game's top rebounder with 10. The team's other starter - Jareal Smith - had seven points and five boards.

Lander's reserves also piled up big statistics, including Mario Pendarvis becoming the team's fourth double-figure scorer with 10 points. He made all four of his shots in his first action of the season.

Scott Elder added nine points off the Bearcats bench, making four of six shots. Stefan Tabasevic had eight rebounds, all on the defensive end. Jamal Branco added eight points and four assists, Chidozie Omile had six points and four rebounds, and Nic Cody had five points and seven rebounds. Carlos Trotty was the only Lander player not to score.

Kacey Holt had a big game for Mars Hill, leading all scorers with 25 points. He made nine of 20 shots, including five of 10 from 3-point range.

Daron Guyton and Will White added 13 points apiece, Kiko Lopez scored 11 points, and Tate Myles added nine points for Mars Hill. Kevin Haynes paced the Lions with five assists.

In addition to shooting 57 percent from the floor, the Bearcats made 15 of 21 free throws (71 percent) and four of 15 from 3-point range (27 percent).

Mars Hill made 27 of 77 shots (35 percent), 18 of 24 free throws (75 percent), and eight of 26 from behind the arc (31 percent).

The lone sore spot for Lander was committing 23 turnovers to only nine by Mars Hill.

Lander's starting five built a huge 27-8 lead over the game's first nine minutes, beginning with a dunk by Carrier on the opening possession. Other highlights in the run were Pruett's three-point play, Jareal Smith's tip-in and 3-pointer on consecutive possessions, Wright's coast-to-coast driving layup, and a basket by Dermaine Smith that made it 18-5 at the 14:38 mark.

The run continued as Pruett hit a 3, and Dermaine Smith slammed two dunks in a row, the first when he emphatically flushed a missed shot by Wright, and the second on a nifty pass from Pruett to make it 27-8 with 11 minutes left.

Even as some of the starters were replaced, Branco made a driving layup off Dermaine Smith's blocked shot, Wright hit one free throw, and Pendarvis scored his first basket of the season to make it 32-8 inside the 10-minute mark.

Omile's basket upped the lead to 34-10, and Elder scored consecutive baskets in the paint for a 38-16 advantage inside seven minutes to go. Dermaine Smith's basket in the paint matched Lander's largest lead of the first half at 24 points, 40-16, at the six-minute mark.

Mars Hill kept battling, getting 3s by James Fields and Holt to pull within 44-28 with three minutes to go. Tate hit a long 3 as the Lions were within 48-31 with 1:50 left.

Guyton's steal and layup closed Mars Hill within 50-33. But Pruett's three-point play with 20 seconds left extended Lander's lead to 53-33 at halftime.

In the first half, Dermaine Smith and Pruett scored a combined 27 points on 12 of 15 shooting from the floor, Carrier had nine rebounds already, and Wright had six assists. The Bearcats shot 60 percent in the first half (24 of 40) and out-rebounded the Lions 30-12.

After Jalen Witherspoon's 3 pulled the Lions within 56-36, Lander matched its largest lead of the game of 24 points on baskets by Dermaine Smith and Wright, making it 60-36 at the 16:24 mark.

The Bearcats opened their lead even further with 11 unanswered points, including five by Wright, four by Pruett, and a basket by Dermaine Smith for a 71-38 lead with 14:19 to go.

Pendarvis's 3-pointer and Wright's steal and layup extended the lead to 76-40 with 13:31 left.

Pendarvis scored twice more to match Lander's largest lead at 36 points, 81-45, with 10:50 to go as the Bearcats were shooting 66 percent from the floor at that point (35 of 53).

Lopez's three-point play closed Mars Hill within 83-52 at the 9:31 mark. But Lander's Cody answered with his first basket of the game, Elder scored inside, and Tabasevic scored his first points to make it 89-56 inside the eight-minute mark.

Elder's 3 pushed the Bearcats past the 90-point mark with 6:55 still remaining, increasing the lead to 92-59.

Branco's free throw with 3:47 left gave Lander a 98-69 lead. But Mars Hill scored 10 unanswered points to pull within 98-79, with Holt scoring three consecutive baskets including a 3.

The Bearcats hit the century mark with 1:38 left when Omile hit a pair of free throws, making it 100-79. Branco's reverse layup off an offensive rebound in the final seconds closed the scoring.