The University of North Georgia (UNG) men's basketball team overcame a 12-point second-half deficit to advance to the Peach Belt Conference Tournament Championship with a 65-59 win over Columbus State in the PBC Tournament semifinals.
The Nighthawks and Columbus State battled early, with seven lead changes through the first 10 minutes.
The Cougars strung together a 6-0 run to give them their largest lead of the first half 22-16 with 6:56 remaining.
North Georgia continued to fight, stringing together tough baskets down low to chip away at the Cougars' lead. After a missed three from JoJo Peterson, Zack Hawkinson grabbed a pair of offensive boards and fought through contact to convert on a layup to put the Nighthawks in front with 2:37 left in the first period.
Columbus State answered the Nighthawks with a 7-4 run capped off by a three-pointer right before time expired to head into halftime with a two-point lead.
The Cougars picked up right where they left off in the first half, outscoring North Georgia 23-13 to open the second period, extending their lead 54-42 with 10:20 remaining.
With their PBC Tournament Championship hopes on the line, the Nighthawks found a second wind, starting with a 7-0 run highlighted by a three from AJ Baskerville that brought North Georgia back within five.
On the other end of the floor, Chase Champion came up with back-to-back steals to set up buckets for Hawkinson and Baskerville to cut the deficit to one.
With 4:13 remaining, Hawkinson took over, scoring five unanswered points to give the Nighthawks a four-point lead. Baskerville followed that up with a big offensive board and putback layup to extend the lead to six.
The Cougars would not go down without a fight, knocking down a three to make it a one-score game with 46 seconds remaining.
Down by three, Columbus State was forced to foul Ja'mari Arnold, who hit one of two free throws to give UNG a four-point lead.
With Columbus State in striking distance, the Nighthawks came up with their biggest defensive stop of the season, forcing a missed three from the Cougars. Columbus State was left with no choice but to foul Champion, who knocked down a pair of free throws with four seconds left to send North Georgia to the championship game.
Champion stepped up and delivered the best game of his collegiate career in the semifinals. The junior from Lithonia, Ga. led North Georgia (22-6, 14-6 PBC) with a career-high 16 points while also chipping in four rebounds, two steals and a perfect 6-6 performance from the free-throw line. Hawkinson also came up big, scoring 15 points and grabbing 10 boards to secure his third double double of the season.
Columbus State (22-5, 15-5 PBC) was paced in the semifinals by Jordan Mitchell's 13 points.
For the second time in the last three seasons, North Georgia has clinched a spot in the PBC Tournament Championship. The Nighthawks take an 11-game winning streak into the title game against No. 1 seed Lander tomorrow at 1 p.m. at Finis Horne Arena.
