DAHLONEGA | Despite leading for 39 of the game's 40 minutes, the University of North Georgia men's basketball team fell to Columbus State, 71-67, Saturday afternoon at Memorial Hall. The Nighthawks slip to 15-10 overall with a 9-9 record in Peach Belt action.
 
North Georgia was on fire in the first half, leading by 15 at the 10-minute mark of the opening period. Columbus State (19-6, 13-5 PBC) would narrow the lead to four before UNG went on a late run to take an 11-point lead into the break.
 
The Nighthawks controlled the game for the majority of the second half leading by as much as 16 at one point and holding a 13 point advantage over the Cougars with just four minutes to play. Not much would go UNG's way in the final four minutes however, as CSU went on a 14-3 run in under two minutes.
 
Turnovers, fouls and missed free throws would plague North Georgia in the closing minutes as Columbus State pulled off the improbable come-from-behind victory.

With 7:03 on the clock, Travis Core converted a three-point play to put North Georgia up 59-43, leaving the Cougars grasping at straws.

The lead was still 13 (64-51) with four minutes to go, at which point the Cougars began their comeback.

Corey Green's 15 points off the bench led UNG, while Andrew Lawrence collected a team-high eight rebounds. Core finished with 14 points while Shaquan Cantrell added 11 points, including eight in the first half.

CSU's Kenney Funderburk led all scorers with 24 points on the night.
 
The Nighthawks will wrap up their regular season slate on Wednesday evening, hosting Georgia Southwestern at 7:30 p.m., in Memorial Hall. A win would secure a spot for UNG in the PBC Tournament quarterfinals to be held next Saturday, February 28.