AMERICUS, Ga. – The Lander men's basketball team fell in its Peach Belt Conference opener to Georgia Southwestern Wednesday evening 84-73 at the Storm Dome.

The Bearcats drop to 2-3 overall and 0-1 in conference play. The Hurricanes move to 3-0 overall and 1-0 in conference play.

Lander saw six players finish in double figures in scoring, with senior Deon Berrien leading the way with 16 points. Berrien also notched 12 rebounds and four assists to go with his scoring touch. Fellow senior DaJuan Moorer joined Berrien in the double-double category with 10 points and 12 rebounds, five of which were offensive boards.

Redshirt Junior Zane Rankin followed behind Berrien with 13 points and three rebounds. Senior LaRaymond Spivery and freshman Sebastian Augustave both finished with 11 points, three rebounds and two assists. Junior Jermaine Patterson finished his night with 10 points, three assists and two rebounds.

Lander has now had at least three players hit double figures in scoring in every game this season along with at least five players in back-to-back-games. The Bearcats have recorded a double-double in back-to-back games as well.

The Bearcats went 25-of-57 (.439) from the floor and 12-of-17 (.706) from the free-throw line. GSW shot 28-of-54 (.519) from the floor and 23-of-35 (.657) from the free-throw line.

Lander drew first blood off a 3-pointer from Berrien 18 seconds into the contest, but the lead would not hold for long, with the Hurricanes going on a 7-0 run before Moorer slammed home a dunk at the 16:14 mark to quell the host's scoring run. Both teams traded baskets for the next couple of minutes before a layup from Berrien would give the Bearcats a 13-12 lead at the 12:31 mark and spark a run for the Bearcats.

An 8-3 run for the Bearcats would help keep the Hurricanes away until the 9:12 mark, and then the storm began to worsen. Both teams would trade baskets and take leads for the remainder of the first half, with the Hurricanes leading by as much as nine at the 1:34 mark before Lander closed to gap to five to close the half trailing 40-35.

Not taking no for an answer; Lander traded blows with the Hurricanes for the next 12 minutes, getting the game tied or taking a lead three times in that span. The last time Lander held the lead was at the 7:21 mark of the second half after Patterson hit a pair of free throws to first tie the game at 60 and then give the Bearcats a 61-60 edge. That would be as close as the Bearcats would get to picking up the win, as GSW came back in full force, going on a 14-0 run over the next three minutes to establish a double-figure lead.

The Bearcats were able to push it within eight points in the last two minutes, but foul trouble prevented a true comeback.

Lander is next in action Saturday, January 9 as it hosts Clayton State at 3:30 pm.

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