PEMBROKE, N.C. | James Murray-Boyles scored 14 of his game-high 20 points in the second as the University of North Carolina at Pembroke rallied from as many as 14 points down to defeat Young Harris College 78-72 in a Peach Belt Conference men's basketball win Saturday (Feb. 6) afternoon at the English E. Jones Center.
                             
The Braves improved to 12-11 overall and to 6-8 in the Peach Belt while the Mountain Lions fell to 12-11 and 10-4. Young Harris returns to the YHC Basketball Arena Wednesday (Feb. 10) when they host Georgia College on Faculty Appreciation Night.
 
After Alex Bradley's three-pointer on the first UNCP possession of the second half tied the game at 33, Young Harris opened up an 11-point lead (46-35) as they outscored the Braves 13-2 over a three-minute span. Bjorn Walker had five points during the run sandwiched around three-pointers from J.B. Charles and Ben Waterhouse.
 
The Braves cut the lead to seven (48-41) on a Brendon Watts dunk with 14:21 to play, but the Mountain Lions reeled off seven unanswered points  to take a 14-point lead (55-41) on a dunk by Marcellus Roberts two minutes later.
 
UNCP went to a pressing defense that jump started its comeback. The Braves, who forced 23 YHC turnovers, scored 12 points off 11 second-half turnovers by the Mountain Lions. The Braves scored 13 consecutive points to close within two points at 55-53 on a Murray-Boyles stick back with 9:55 to go. Young Harris turned the ball on five consecutive possessions as the Braves climbed back into the game,
 
The Mountain Lions got a C.J. Wilson layup and Waterhouse three-pointer to open a seven-point lead (60-53) with 8:48 remaining.  UNC Pembroke clawed its way back as took their first lead since midway through the first 20 minutes on Tyler Kordenbrock's short jumper in the lane with just under a minute to play.
 
The Braves took advantage of a missed shot and a turnover by the Mountain Lions to open up five-point lead (77-72) after layups by Jihad Wright and Watts.
 
Watts finished with a double double – 17 points and 12 rebounds – while Carson Mounce added 12 points for UNCP.
 
Waterhouse led the Mountain Lions with 18 points while Wilson 14 points to give the junior from Conyers, Georgia, 544 points for the season, surpassing Frank Adams' 534 total set in 2011 (NCAA era). Wilson added eight assists and four steals. Marques McKoy added a double double of his own with 13 points and 11 rebounds while Walker added 10 points and six rebounds.