GREENWOOD – DeVontae Wright scored 19 points and Ronald Zimmerman scored 10 of his 18 points in the final three minutes and 30 seconds as the No. 12 USC Aiken Pacers outlasted the Lander Bearcats 76-68 in a Peach Belt Conference game Saturday night at Horne Arena.

Aiken outscored Lander 15-7 over the final four-plus minutes to sweep the season series.

The Bearcats, who lost 61-60 at Aiken on Feb. 5, fell to 14-9 overall and 8-6 in the Peach Belt.

Aiken improved to 21-3 and 13-1.

Paul Larsen added a double-double for the Pacers with 12 points and 11 rebounds, and Alvin Brown contributed 10 points and four blocked shots.

Aiken had a big 44-24 rebounding advantage and outscored Lander 26-12 at the free-throw line.

Jareal Smith and Dermaine Smith led the Bearcats with 13 points apiece, JR Washington added 12 points, and Darius Carrier contributed 10 points.

Mario Pendarvis paced Lander with six rebounds while Michael Panaggio and Jareal Smith led the team with five assists apiece.

The Bearcats made 24 of 56 shots from the floor (43 percent), only 12 of 22 free throws (55 percent) and eight of 16 from three-point range (50 percent).

Aiken made 23 of 46 shots (50 percent), 26 of 35 free throws (74 percent) and four of 13 from behind the arc (31 percent).

Washington hit his first three shots, scoring inside on a give-and-go pass from Dermaine Smith and then nailing a pair of 3s as Lander took an 8-2 lead. Jareal Smith added a pair of free throws for a 10-2 advantage with 16:17 left.

With their lead cut to 13-11, Washington and Carrier blocked consecutive shots to keep the Bearcats ahead, Mike Lee hit a 3 for a 16-11 lead, and Ricardo Martin's inside bucket made it 18-13 with 9:22 left.

Aiken took its first lead, 19-18, with 7:46 to go when Zimmerman hit his second trey in as many possessions.

Brown's dunk gave Aiken a 23-22 lead at the six-minute mark. But Lander regained the advantage when Dermaine Smith made a layup and a 3-pointer, making it 27-23 with 5:17 to go.

Larsen hit a pair of free throws, Wright scored and Rick Alderman made two free throws to put the Pacers back on top, 29-27, with 3:42 left.

But the back-and-forth trend of the first half continued as Lander moved back ahead, 31-29, on Pendarvis's put-back and Dermaine Smith's fast-break layup.

The Bearcats led 33-32 at halftime.

The lead changed hands three more times early in the second half with Alderman's free throws putting the Pacers up 38-37 at the 17:38 mark.

After Jareal Smith's basket knotted the game at 39, Aiken took its biggest lead of the night at 43-39 on field goals in the paint by Jesse Seilern and Alderman.

Jareal Smith found Carrier open for a layup that pulled Lander within 45-44 at the 14-minute mark.

But the Pacers grabbed their biggest lead of the game on Wright's three-point play and Shane Porchea's free throw, making it 49-44 with 12:54 to go.

The Bearcats twice pulled within a possession on Carrier's basket and Dermaine Smith's field goal, pulling the hosts within 50-48 at the 11:25 mark.

Lander regained the lead at 51-50 with 10:55 left on Jareal Smith's 3 from the right corner and Panaggio added a fast-break layup for a three-point advantage.

Panaggio made a pair of free throws to give the Bearcats a 55-52 with 9:38 left. But Larsen scored twice inside as Aiken regained the lead at 58-56 with 7:36 to go.

True to form, the lead would change hands again when Panaggio hit a 3-pointer, putting Lander back on top 59-58 at the seven-minute mark.

Larsen made one of two free throws to tie the game at 59 with 6:44 left, and he gave the Pacers a 61-59 lead on a put-back at the five-minute mark.

Pendarvis's reverse layup tied it with 4:39 remaining. But Seilern's layup put Aiken back on top and Zimmerman's 3 matched the Pacers' biggest lead of the game at five points, 66-61, with 3:31 left.

Zimmerman then gave Aiken an eight-point lead with his fourth 3 of the game, making it 69-61 at the three-minute mark.

But the Bearcats were still clawing as Jareal Smith's trey pulled them within five with 2:32 left. Lander had a chance to pull within a possession when Jareal Smith collected a steal and attempted a layup, but Brown blocked it and Larsen grabbed the defensive rebound.

Zimmerman's free throws just inside the two-minute mark extended Aiken's lead to 71-64. Brown added one of two free throws to match the Pacers' biggest lead of eight.

But Jareal Smith's 3 from the left corner pulled Lander within 72-67 with 1:29 left.

Aiken took about 30 seconds off the clock in hopes of increasing its lead. But Wright missed a shot in the paint and Dermaine Smith grabbed the defensive rebound. Panaggio was fouled early in Lander's possession but settled for one of two free throws, cutting the deficit to 72-68 with 47 seconds to go.

Wright's two free throws with 41 seconds left increased the lead to six. Washington missed two 3-point attempts and Jareal Smith also missed from long range, and Zimmerman put the game away with two more free throws.