By: Bailey Clark, Sports Information Graduate Assistant

DAHLONEGA, Ga.- Georgia College & State University Men's Basketball (4-5, 0-2 PBC) falls 77-73 at the University of North Georgia (7-1, 2-0 PBC) after a hard fought second half, Monday night. 

The game started quickly with both sides banking 22 points in the first three minutes. The Nighthawks ran away with the lead at the half 46-34. GCSU got defensive in the second half by limiting a hot first half UNG offense to just 31 points. The Bobcats dropped 39 points to outscore the Nighthawks in the second half but came up short 77-73. 

The Bobcats matched their season high of 73 points in a game by having three double-digit scorers. Richard Crawford III (Evans) led the offense icing 13 points and shooting 50% from field goal range. Zyair Greene (Lithonia) came in hot off the bench with his season high of 12 points as the second leading scorer. He went 4-for-6 field goal range banking 3-of-4 of his three point bucket attempts. Chapin Rierson (Calhoun) rounded out the double-digit scoring with 10 points. 

Luke Chism (Dawsonville) led the squad in rebounds nabbing 10 with six coming under the UNG basket. Austin Sloan (Warner Robins), Brandon Thomas (McDonough) and Rierson all corralled five rebounds with 11 of their 15 coming on the defensive side of the ball. 

The Bobcats will take a break from conference play to take on West Florida University for the first home game of the season. Tip-off is set for 11:00 a.m. for GCSU Athletics annual education day which is making its return for the first time since the 2020-21 season. Live stats and broadcast links will be available at GCBobcats.com. 

As a proud recipient of the 2021 PBC Sportsmanship Institution of the Year, the Georgia College Department of Athletics sponsors 11 varsity athletic programs at the NCAA Division II level. GC Athletics is now two-time winners of both the PBC Commissioner's Cup and the league's sportsmanship honor. As a Division II program, Bobcat Athletics prides itself on balancing the life of the student-athlete, evidenced by the teams' continued appearances in postseason competition as well as high-level academic success and community-service involvement. Bobcat Athletics embodies the mantra of "Graduating Champions for Life." Sign up at @GCSUBobcats on all social media outlets for up-to-the-minute reports.