ROME, Ga. | Shorter University built up an 18-point first half lead, but had to turn away a late Georgia College & State University rally to pick up a 78-75 non-conference men's basketball victory Wednesday (Nov. 20) evening at the Winthrop-King Centre.

The Hawks improved to 2-2, while the Bobcats fell to 1-4. GCSU returns to the Centennial Center Tuesday (Nov. 26) for a 7:30 p.m. contest against Fort Valley State University.

Shorter used a 13-2 run over a four-minute stretch in the later stages of the first half to open up a 34-16 lead after a Carter Selman three-pointer with 6:04 remaining. GCSU closed the margin to 43-30 at the half before the Bobcats trimmed the deficit to seven points (51-44) after an Oscar Lynch three-pointer and a James Nichols III jumper with 16:08 to go.

The Hawks pushed their lead back to as many as 17 points (71-54), but the Bobcats got it with 10 points (75-65) with 5:02 remaining. GCSU used a 9-1 run to trim the Shorter lead down to two (76-74) after a hook shot by Tony Carpio with 3:05 left. However that was the last field goal by either team down the stretch.

Zyair Greene led the Bobcats with 21 points, while Lynch finished with 11 and Carpio added 10 more. Carpio led GCSU with six rebounds, while Nichols finished with nine points and five rebounds. 

About GCSU Athletics 
Owning the top Academic Success Rate among all public colleges and universities in Division II for three consecutive academic years, the Georgia College Department of Athletics sponsors 11 varsity athletic programs at the NCAA Division II level. GCSU Athletics has won four consecutive Presidents' Awards for Academic Excellence, and are two-time winners of the PBC Commissioner's Cup and four-time winners of the PBC Institution of the Year Sportsmanship Award. 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 or subscribe to the GSCU Athletics e-newsletter to receive the latest news, schedule updates and to interact with GCSU Athletics.
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