Williamsburg, KY – Cumberlands took their third straight MSC game in impressive fashion, taking down Cumberland University 100-77 on their home court Thursday night. UC move to 17-1 on the year, marking their best start since 1985.
 
The Patriots dominated the paint in their blowout win over the Cumberland University Phoenix. Cumberlands outscored their opponents 56-30 in the paint and out rebounded the Phoenix 36-25. Five Pats finished in double figures led by Matt Cromer who put together an 18 point and five rebound performance. The junior was the definition of efficient on the court, going 7-8 from the field and a perfect 3-3 from deep. Jonathan Brown finished with 16 points, five rebounds while J.J. Ramey added 15 pts and four boards. Tajahri Cave rounded out UC's double-digit scorers with 12 points and added three assists and a pair of steals as well.
 
Cromer started the night off a with an early three to give the Pats a quick lead. CU hit a triple of their own before a pair of buckets from Brown and Cromer put the Pats back on top. A Ramey three and Brown layup in transition pushed the score to 12-5 after five minutes of play.
 
The Phoenix fought back, scoring eight straight points to take their first lead of the night. Cromer's second three of the game halted the run and gave UC the lead right back. The London, Ky native was active on the defensive end, forcing a turnover which led to a Ramey lay in to extend the lead to four. Cumberland U put together a few solid possessions to go back on top 23-19 with 7:55 to play in the period.
 
Both teams traded baskets before a Cave steal led to an easy basket on the other end to take the lead back from the Phoenix. The final five minutes of play was all Patriots, as they went on a 20-4 run to take a commanding 45-30 lead heading into the half. Cromer started the run with five straight before a circus shot from Cave went in off the bank. Cave found Harry Morrice for a slam the next possession followed by a Tanner Walton layup. Ramey nailed a three with 27 seconds on the clock before Robertas Jonaitis made a nice move and finished through contact for an old fashioned three-point play to end the half.
 
Cumberland University came out of the locker room and scored the first five points of the second half, cutting the UC lead to 10. This didn't last long as the Pats would go on a 23-1 run over the next seven minutes to grow their lead to 32. Brown found his rhythm as he scored a quick 10 points during the run. Anthony Johnson added to the fun with his first points of the night while Cromer and Jonaitis added a bucket each.
 
Ramey's third triple put UC up 33, their largest lead of the night. CU fought back with a couple made threes to make it a 21-point game, but this was as close as they would get. A steal from Barek Williams led to a slam from Brady Bell on the other end as the Patriots reached the century mark with just under 20 seconds in the game. The final buzzer sounded with the Pats victorious 100-77.
 
Cumberlands remain perfect in Mid-South Conference play and have the weekend off before traveling south to Tennessee where they will faceoff with Bethel on Thursday the 25^th, and the 7^th ranked Lions of Freed Hardeman on Saturday the 27^th. Gametime for those games are set for 8:30 PM and 4 PM ET.
 
For the latest and most up-to-date information on University of the Cumberlands Athletics. Please visit www.cumberlandspatriots.com. Follow us on Twitter- @UC_Patriots and @UCPatsGameday, Instagram- @UCPatriots, TikTok- @ucpatriots, Youtube- Cumberlands Patriots, and Facebook by searching University of the Cumberlands Athletics.