DAHLONEGA – With a 73-66 win over Augusta Saturday night in Lynn Cottrell Arena at the UNG Convocation Center, the No. 16 University of North Georgia men's basketball team moved into a three-way tie for first place in the Peach Belt Conference. The win boosted the Nighthawks to a 21-5 overall record and a 12-4 mark in PBC play.
A home 78-75 loss against Columbus State for No. 19 Lander dropped the Bearcats to 12-4, while USC Aiken took down Clayton State to improve to the same record.
Sophomore guard AJ White torched the Jaguar defense all night long to lead UNG to the win. White had 13 first half points to help his team maintain a slim 33-31 lead at the break.
A dunk by AU's Max Adamasun to opens the second half squared the score at 33 apiece before Eric Jones answered with a slam of his own to give North Georgia a lead that the Nighthawks would keep for the remainder of the game. UNG would lead by as many as 13 on three different occasions in the second period.
He added eight more points in the second half to finish with a game-high 21. His performance marks the 12th time this season and 15th time in his career that White has scored 20 or more points in a game. He did so on an efficient 6-for-12 (50%) performance from the floor while going a perfect 8-for-8 at the free throw line.
As has been the case all season long, White's night was complimented by junior forward Frank Champion.
Champion, who participated in the Senior Night honors prior to the start of the game, went 7-for-9 from the floor en route to 17 points and eight rebounds in the win.
After combining for just 19 points in UNG's Wednesday night loss at Georgia Southwestern, White and Champion combined for 38 of the Nighthawk's 73 points on Friday. The PBC's top two scorers (White's 18.0 points per game & Champion's 17.6 points per game) went 13-for-21 from the floor against the Jaguars.
Augusta (15-11, 8-8 PBC) was led by Ja'Queze Kirby and Adamsun as each scored 16 points for the Jaguars.
The Nighthawks now set their sights on USC Aiken who comes to town next Wednesday, Feb. 28 at 7:30 p.m.
