Columbia, KY – The Pats completed their regular season series sweep over the Lindsey Wilson Blue Raiders on the road Thursday night. UC showcased their offensive abilities in the 94-78 win, moving to 18-7 on the year and 7-2 in MSC play.
Anthony Johnson was once again UC's top scorer with 26 pts, 3 reb, 4 ast, 2 stl, and 1 blk. The junior had 19 of his 26 in the first half. Matthew Cromer added 22 points, five boards, and two steals while Robertas Jonaitis finished with a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds. Harry Morrice was the final Patriot in double figures with 10 points and seven rebounds.
Tajahri Cave made his presence known early with a steal in the opening possession of the game. He added a layup for the Pats first points followed by a Johnson triple. An offensive board and put back out of Morrice tied the game at 7-7 before five-straight LWC points put the Blue Raiders ahead 12-5. A Cave slam halted the run before Ryan Davidson and Jonaitis had back-to-back layups to cut their deficit to one. Three more Blue Raider points held UC at bay before another Jonaitis lay in and a made FT from Cromer brought it back to a one-point game. DJ Jones followed with a jumper to give UC the lead with 11:51 in the half.
Lindsey took the lead right back, but not for long as a dunk from Morrice swung the momentum in UC's favor. The Pats built off this, as another Cave steal led to a Cromer bucket. Johnson followed with another three to make it 25-22 in UC's favor. Neither team scored the next two minutes until a Johnson free throw broke the scoreless streak. Four more points from Johnson extended the lead to three, but LWC answered right back by taking a one-point lead with 4:16 on the clock. Cumberlands finished the half on a 15-4 run to take a 45-35 lead into the break. Jonaitis started the run before Cromer and Johnson combined for the remaining 13 points.
UC held a steady 10-point lead over the opening five minutes of the second half before an Anthony Harris slam and two more buckets from Cromer and Johnson extended the lead to 17. A Johnson and-one then grew the lead to 20, followed by an offensive tip-in from Jonaitis made it 67-45 with 13:34 left.
Brady bell got in on the scoring with a three to push the lead to 23. He added a layup, followed by two Cromer FT's as UC's lead grew to 26. Cromer then claimed his second steal of the game and finished with a flush on the other end for a 28-point lead, their biggest of the night. Late scores from Davidson, Jones, and Barek Williams held UC's 20-point lead until the one-minute mark. The final buzzer sounded with UC taking the victory, 94-78.
The Patriots will be back at home on Saturday for senior night as they host the Phoenix of Cumberland University. Gametime is slated for 5 pm ET, with senior day festivities set to begin before warmups right after the women's game.
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