DAHLONEGA – The University of North Georgia (UNG) men's basketball team earned a gritty 72-67 win over Augusta at Lynn Cottrell Arena at the UNG Convocation Center Saturday afternoon.
The Nighthawks moved to 13-6 overall and 5-2 in conference play with the five-point victory.
UNG was led in scoring by junior guard
Cayden Charles who had 20 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the floor while going 8-for-12 at the free throw line. Charles entered the game with a three-game double-double streak and fell two rebounds shy of reaching that mark with eight boards in the win. He added one block and two steals on defense in an all-around great performance that was highlighted by
one of the best dunks of the season.
The Nighthawks fell behind in the opening minutes as Augusta took a 9-6 lead into the first media timeout.
However, the offense came alive towards the end of the first half. UNG took its first lead at 11-9 after a fastbreak layup from Charles.
Minutes later, the lead grew to four points as junior guard
AJ White connected on his first three-pointer of the game. That triple would spark an impressive 22-8 run which gave UNG a 36-21 lead before halftime.
In the second half, senior guard
Hunter Shedenhelm did
Hunter Shedenhelm things as he got hot from deep range.
The Pickerington, Ohio native made his second three-pointer of the game at the 16:49 mark, giving the Nighthawks a 44-33 advantage. Two possessions later, he was inexplicably left open again and
drilled another triple. 47-33. The next time down it was a heat check and Shedenhelm was scorching. He raised and fired another deep three that hit nothing but the net to make it 50-35. Less than a minute later, Shedenhelm buried his fourth consecutive three-pointer and fifth of the game to make it 53-35 with 13:55 to play, giving UNG its largest lead of the game at 18 points. The sharpshooter had successfully completed a 12-2 run all on his own. He finished the game with 15 points on 5-of-7 shooting from deep.
However, Shedenhelm's final three proved to be the turning point for the Jaguars. Over the next 10 minutes, Augusta out-scored the Nighthawks 26-10 to miraculously claw its way back into the fight. With 3:33 to play, Peach Belt Conference leading scorer (23.1 points per game) Demitri Gardner sank a jumper to make it 63-61 in favor of UNG. Gardner would finish with a game-high 24 points.
Unfazed, the Nighthawks responded as freshman forward
Zack Hawkinson withstood contact from his defenders and made a tough layup. The four-point lead blossomed to six points when Hawkinson made two free throws on the next possession.
With 1:12 to go and UNG leading 67-63, Hawkinson was fouled once more. The redshirt freshman calmly stepped to the line and planted two more foul shots in the basket to make it 69-63.
A Jaguars layup at the other end of the floor made it a four-point game. Then a Nighthawk turnover led to Gardner getting fouled as he drove to the lane. He made both free throws and suddenly it was only a two-point game with 24 seconds left to play.
Sophomore forward
Colin Turner was intentionally fouled on the inbound and he split his foul shots, leaving room for Augusta to tie the game as it trailed 70-67 with 20 seconds left. The Jaguars earned two good looks to tie it as Gardner's three-pointer fell short but the long rebound bounced towards the corner. Evan Joyner tracked it down and heaved a second-chance triple with 10 seconds. However, the shot sailed woefully over the rim and Hawkinson collected the rebound before dishing the ball to White who was fouled with 1.2 seconds left on the clock.
The 90.2 percent free throw shooter cared not to make things interesting as he drilled both free throws, cementing the win for the Nighthawks. White ended his performance with 17 points on 4-of-10 shooting with a 7-for-9 mark at the line.
Hawkinson had arguably his best game of the season as he quietly flirted with a triple-double. The Springfield, Ill. native posted 11 points with nine rebounds and a career-high seven assists.
Now UNG gets ready for a home matchup with USC Aiken that takes place next Wednesday, Jan. 29 at 7:30 p.m. from the UNG Convocation Center.
