GREENWOOD – Lander's David Pruett and Dermaine Smith each exceeded 20 points, but it wasn't enough as the Bearcats fell to USC Aiken 74-60 in a Peach Belt Conference game Wednesday night at Horne Arena.

The East Division leading Pacers improved to 15-5 overall and 11-2 in the PBC. Lander fell to 6-13, 1-11.

Paul Larsen carried Aiken with the team's first 10 points of the second half as the visitors pulled away after trailing the Bearcats by as many as eight in the first half.

Pruett led all scorers with 25 points, including 10 of 11 free throws. Smith added 21 points on spectacular 9-for-10 shooting from the floor. But no other Lander teammate scored more than Carlos Trotty's eight points.

Smith added five steals and Chidozie Omile led the Bearcats with four assists. Scott Elder and Darius Elder had two blocked shots apiece. Trotty had no turnovers in 29 minutes at the guard position.

Larsen led the Pacers with 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting and added 10 rebounds for one of two Aiken double-doubles.

Ronald Zimmerman added 18 points for the Pacers, Santoine Butler posted 12 points and 10 rebounds, and Jesse Seilern scored all 10 of his points in the second half. Re'mon Nelson paced Aiken with seven assists.

"We were short-handed tonight, missing a couple of players, and I thought we played hard against a great team," Bearcats head coach Jeff Burkhamer said. "When Dermaine plays with energy, he is fun to coach and fun to watch. Our guys have fought through and played really hard. We have been in every game."

Lander made 22 of 49 shots from the floor (45 percent), 14 of 18 free throws (78 percent), and two of 11 from behind the arc (18 percent).

Aiken hit 28 of 62 shots (45 percent), seven of seven free throws (100 percent), and 11 of 29 from behind the arc (38 percent). The Pacers had a 36-27 edge on the boards.

There were four ties and seven lead changes in the game's first eight minutes, resulting in a 20-all tie. Seven of Lander's first 20 points were scored by Smith, while Trotty added five including a 3-pointer. Zimmerman led the Pacers with a pair of 3s.

Pruett's jumper tied the game at 20, starting a 12-2 Bearcats run. Pruett scored eight of the 12 points, and Smith's basket gave Lander its biggest lead of the game at 30-22 at the 5:26 mark.

But the Pacers responded with nine unanswered points for a 31-30 advantage. Larsen started the run with a basket inside off two offensive rebounds, Nelson hit a 3, and Butler made a basket and a pair of free throws to put Aiken on top with 2:45 to go.

Pruett hit a pair of free throws to put the Bearcats back on top 32-31. But Zimmerman swished a pair of 3s as Aiken finished off the half with a 37-32 lead at the break, outscoring Lander 15-2 over the final five-plus minutes.

Pruett's free throws pulled the Bearcats within 37-34 with 18:36 left. But Larsen hit two free throws, dunked off Nelson's alley-oop pass, swished two more free throws and made an acrobatic reverse layup for a personal 8-0 run and a 45-34 Pacers lead at the 16:16 mark.

Pruett interrupted Larsen's run with three free throws, making him 9-for-9 at the stripe and closing Lander within 45-37. But Larsen's tip-in increased Aiken's lead back to double figures with 14:40 left.

Somebody other than Larsen finally scored in the second half for the Pacers at the 12:45 mark when Seilern hit a 3, and Seilern scored again on Aiken's next possession for a 52-37 lead with 12:08 to go.

The Bearcats' first field goal of the second half came at the 11:48 mark when Smith scored in the paint. Smith's coast-to-coast layup resulting in a three-point play pulled Lander within 52-42 with 11:18 left.

The Bearcats twice closed their deficit to 10, but Seilern hit a long 3 to give Aiken a 59-46 lead at the 9:05 mark. Smith's dunk cut it back to 11, but Zimmerman's fifth 3 of the game extended the lead to 14.

Zimmerman's sixth 3 gave the Pacers a 65-50 lead with 6:37 to go. But Pruett cut Lander's deficit back to 10 again with a basket and his only 3 of the game, making it 65-55 at the 5:32 mark.

However, it would be more than two minutes before either team scored again until Larsen made a cut to the basket and scored off a nice pass from Nelson, was fouled and converted a three-point play for a 68-55 advantage with 3:18 to go. The Bearcats were unable to threaten the rest of the way.