GREENWOOD – The Lander men's basketball team received a double-double from Deon Berrien and remained in first place in the Peach Belt Conference with its sixth consecutive win, 83-74, over Young Harris Saturday afternoon at Horne Arena.
The Bearcats improved to 16-4 overall and 10-2 in the PBC. Lander began the day tied for first with UNC Pembroke.
The Mountain Lions fell to 5-15, 3-9.
Berrien paced the Bearcats with 17 points and 11 rebounds, 10 on the defensive end.
Zane Rankin made his first five shots from the floor and finished 5-for-6, scoring a season-high 16 points for Lander. He was three for three from 3-point range.
DeShundre Rucker scored 11 of his 13 points in the first half for the Bearcats.
Elijah Alston and DaJuan Moorer added 11 points apiece for Lander. LaRaymond Spivery paced the Bearcats with four assists.
Brian Harper led Young Harris with 21 points and five assists. Jonathan King scored 14 points while Ryle Owens added 12 points for the Mountain Lions.
Rucker scored three times inside while Alston and Rankin each hit 3s as Lander raced to a 17-5 lead inside the 15-minute mark of the opening half.
Rucker's put-back gave the Bearcats a 28-17 advantage with 8:36 to go. But King scored twice, Owens had a breakaway dunk and Harper made a 3 during a 9-0 run that pulled Young Harris within 28-26 inside the seven minutes left.
Alston scored twice during a 9-2 run which extended Lander's lead from 32-28 to 41-30 with three minutes to go. The Bearcats led 43-34 at halftime.
A 3 by Owens had the Mountain Lions within 45-41 with 17:19 left. But Rankin had a three-point play and 3-pointer while Tyler Brevard also hit a 3 as Lander's lead grew to 59-45 with 14 minutes to go.
Berrien's three-point play gave the Bearcats a 64-50 advantage with 12:44 left.
Harper's jumper in the lane pulled Young Harris within 68-61 at the eight-minute mark. Owens made a layup that cut the Mountain Lion deficit to 72-68 with 5:52 left.
Down four, Young Harris had three more possessions but could not cut into its deficit any further. Then Berrien hit a jumper to push the Lander lead to 74-68 with four minutes to go.
Brandon Beloti and Harper each hit tough layups that pulled the Mountain Lions within 74-72 as the clock wound close to two minutes left.
Moorer's free throws increased the Bearcat lead to four. But King's dunk pulled Young Harris back within 76-74 with 1:43 to go.
Lander got some breathing room with 1:13 left when Brevard made one free throw and missed the second, but Alston grabbed the offensive rebound and slid behind everybody for a layup that made it 79-74.
The Mountain Lions had a turnover and two missed shots on their next three possessions. Alston and Berrien each went two for two at the line to finish the scoring.
#cLawsUp | @LanderMBB
