UNCP (4-5, 1-2) could not miss a shot in the first 15 minutes of the ball game as they buried shot-after-shot from behind the arc. At one point in the half, the Braves were shooting almost 60% from behind the line as they jumped out to a double-digit lead five minutes into the game. A lay-up by junior guard Lee Moore with 6:42 left on the clock put UNCP up 31-17 and gave the Saints (4-2, 3-0) a deep hole to dig out of.

North Georgia would not break though, and the Saints closed out the first half with a 23-13 run to cut the lead to four. A buzzer beating three from senior forward Jeffery Brown dropped in and gave the Braves momentum and a 44-40 lead heading into half time.

UNCP shot 47% (18-38) from the field and 39% (7-18) from the three-point line in the first half. The Saints struggled to connect in the first frame, shooting 40% (12-30) overall and a dismal 20% (3-15) from behind the arc.

In the second half, North Georgia came out firing and took their first lead of the game two minutes in off of a jumper from junior guard Matt Causey. The Saints found their rhythm and had an 11-point lead with 13:45 left to play. North Georgia broke the back of the UNCP defense, shooting 65% (24-37) from the field and 46% (6-13) from three-point land as they ran away with the game. The Saints defense stepped up as well, cooling off the UNCP attack and limiting them to only 38% (15-40) from the field in the second half.

Causey came away with 30 points and 10 assists, his second straight double-double of the season and a season high for points. Freshman post Anthony Rowe came off the bench and put on a show with 20 points, six rebounds, and three monster dunks. North Georgia also got strong performances by senior guard Mark Causey who also tallied his second consecutive double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Junior guard Buzz Wehunt added 18 points along with senior post Marcus Robinson who finished with 13 points and eight rebounds.

Brown led the Braves attack with 17 points and was paced by Moore who had 14 points with six rebounds off the bench. Jarrell Hunter added 11 points to the effort while sophomore guard Terrance Grant and sophomore forward Curtis Royal each chipped in 10 points.

North Georgia will play again next week as they head to Nassau, Bahamas to take part in the Sunshine Shootout. UNCP will take the remainder of December off and return to the hardwood on January 4 as they take on Georgia College & State University on the road.