TIGERVILLE, S.C. – The King University men's basketball team earned a road win Saturday, beating Conference Carolinas foe North Greenville 71-64 behind a double-double from
Mikhail Pocknett, who finished the game with 21 points and 13 rebounds for King.
THE BASICS
FINAL: King 71, North Greenville 64
LOCATION: Hayes Gymnasium; Tigerville, S.C.
RECORDS: King 4-7, 2-2 Conference Carolinas; North Greenville 4-6, 2-2 Conference Carolinas
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
- The Tornado were hot early, taking a 19-7 lead just seven minutes into the game after shooting 7-of-9 from the field.
- Pocknett and Jordan Akal both scored six points, with Akal taking a no-look pass from Petar Mijatovic and hitting a contested three to make it a 19-7 Tornado lead, forcing a North Greenville timeout.
- After the Trailblazers pulled to within 27-19. They went on a 12-2 scoring run, tying the score at 29 with just over four minutes left in the half.
- A pair of threes by North Greenville saw them take a 35-31 lead into the final minute, but the Tornado finished the half on a 6-1 scoring run, taking a 37-36 lead into the locker room.
Second Half
- Neither team was able to establish a large lead early, with King taking a 45-41 lead with 15:44 left on a dunk from Abdel-Majid Dylan Gory, off a Seth Cullen assist.
- The Trailblazers took their final lead of the game at 6:27 after hitting a pair of free throws, stretching the lead to 57-54 with 5:48 left.
- Xavier Betancourt hit a pair of free throws at the 5:29 mark, followed by a layup after a defensive rebound by Gory, giving the Tornado a 58-57 lead.
- King finished the game on a 13-6 scoring run over the final three minutes, with Cullen scoring five of those, with Pocknett and Akal each adding three.
- During the final three minutes, King went 6-of-7 from the free throw line, with Akal going 3-of-4 as the Tornado held on for the conference win.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- This is the second consecutive game that Pocknett has posted a double-double, finishing with team-highs in points (21) and rebounds (13).
- Betancourt finished with 15 points, nine rebounds and three assists, while Akal had 14 points on 3-of-6 shooting from beyond the arc.
- Cullen, who finished with 11 points, also had a team-high two blocked shots.
FOR THE FOES
- Michael Wilson Jr. had 25 points to lead the Trailblazers, with Savion Brown and Max Topham both scoring 13 points.
- Ryan Djoussa had nine rebounds, along with two blocks while Brown had a game-high four steals.
UP NEXT
- King will host Barton on Tuesday at 12 p.m. before taking a break for the holidays.
