MELBOURNE, Fla. - Bryan Gonzalez scored 32 points as the University of Puerto Rico at Bayamon men's basketball team held off a furious Young Harris College rally as the Vaqueros won 72-70 in the first round of the Erdman Automotive Thanksgiving Tournament Friday (Nov. 26) afternoon at the Clemente Center on the Florida Tech campus.

The Vaqueros improved to 1-2, while the Mountain Lions fell to 0-5. Young Harris will face the loser of the other first round game between Morris College and Florida Tech in Saturday's (Nov. 27) 1:30 p.m. consolation game.

INSIDE THE BOXSCORE:

• UPR Bayamon used a 10-0 run midway through the first half to open up a 23-15 lead on an Evan Colon basket before taking a 42-29 lead at the half.
• The Vaqueros extended their lead to as many as 15 points - 49-34 - with 17:08 to play after Gonzalez sank a three-pointer off a YHC turnover.
• The Mountain Lions scored eight unanswered points to trim the deficit to seven points (49-42) after Karl Chavis hit a free throw with 12:44 to go.
• YHC got as close as three points (55-52) after Lenny Pradia connected on a three-pointer with 9:45 left.
• The Vaqueros used a 9-1 run to push their lead to 11 points (70-59) after a steal and layup by Luis Moya with 6:06 to go.
• Young Harris responded by scoring the next nine points to close within two points (70-68) after Christian Schach nailed a three-pointer with three minutes to play.
• The teams swapped baskets on their next possessions, but neither team would score again over the final 2:16 as the teams combined to miss their final nine shots from the floor.
• McCoy, who hit six three-pointers, led the Mountain Lions with 19 points, while Pradia scored a career-high 14 off the the bench.Schach added nine points, while Eden Davis had eight.
• Chavis led Young Harris, which outrebounded UPR Bayamon 42-27, with 12 rebounds, while Caleb Towns grabbed six.
• The Vaqueros scored 30 points off YHC's 19 turnovers.

Be the first to know what's going on with the Mountain Lions -- Follow @YHCAthletics on Twitter, follow YHCAthletics on Instagram, become a fan of Young Harris College Athletics on Facebook and subscribe to the Young Harris College Athletics e-newsletter to receive the latest news, schedule updates and to interact with Young Harris Athletics.