TAMPA – The University of North Georgia men's basketball team used a second-half surge to pull away from Eckerd in their 79-59 victory at the Tampa Classic.
Frank Champion starred for the Nighthawks in the game, scoring 23 points with four assists and 13 rebounds on the offensive side and adding seven blocks and three steals on the defensive side.
Giancarlo Bastianoni added 20 points, making five of his seven attempts from the field and shooting 10-for-12 from the free-throw line. Bastianoni grabbed six rebounds in the game, leading the team in offensive rebounds with three.
AJ White rounded out the double-digit scoring with 13 points in 23 minutes of action. The win marks the sixth straight win of the season and moves North Georgia to 9-1 on the season, their best start in the NCAA era.
Key Moments
- Eckerd jumped out to a 9-2 run in the first four minutes of the game, but North Georgia battled back to tie the game at 13-13 with 12:55 remaining in the half.
- North Georgia scored 14 straight points ending at the 10:38 mark in the first half to take a 22-13 lead.
- Both sides traded baskets for the rest of the half, with Eckerd trimming the deficit to five at the halftime break.
- The Nighthawks went on a 22-3 run to take a 26-point lead with 3:44 left in the game. UNG scored 13 straight points during the run.
- A layup by Mekhail Bethea with 1:46 left in the game gave North Georgia a 27-point lead, their largest lead of the game.
Next Up
A brief holiday break for the Nighthawks will end when they head on the road for a Peach Belt Conference matchup against Georgia Southwestern on Jan. 4th for a 7:30 p.m. tip-off versus the Hurricanes. GSW is 5-4 on the season, and coming off a 67-54 loss to USC Aiken, the two programs have met 96 times, with both schools splitting the season series 1-1 last year.
