FLORENCE, SC – Sophomore center Jonah Pierce and senior forward Bryce Beamer combined for 49 points and 20 rebounds to lead Francis Marion University to an energized 101-94 win over visiting Lees-McRae College, Saturday afternoon (Jan. 28) in Conference Carolinas men's basketball action.
 
Francis Marion improves to 12-7 overall and 9-4 in the conference, moving into a tie for fourth place and only one game out of second position.
 
FMU will play its next three contests on the road beginning with a 7 p.m. tip-off at Chowan University on Wednesday night.  The next home game for the Patriots will be Feb. 11 against Emmanuel College at 4 p.m.
 
Pierce registered his ninth double-double of the year, and fifth in his last five outings, with 26 points and 14 rebounds.  He shot 8-of-13 from the floor and was 10-of-13 at the foul line.  Beamer netted 23 points, 15 of which came after halftime.  He connected on 7-of-12 shots from the floor, including draining 5-of-8 attempts from behind the three-point arc.
 
Senior guards Tionne Rollins and Alex Cox scored 16 and 12 points respectively, with Cox hauling down a career-high nine rebounds and dishing out six assists.
 
Brandon Brown led Lees-McRae (8-13, 4-9) with 20 points coming off the Bobcat bench, while Timon Jones added 18 points on five made three-pointers.
 
After FMU opened with a 10-5 advantage, Lees-McRae rallied to take its only lead of the contest at 13-12 on the second of two three-pointers by Jeremy  Golson.  The Patriots responded with an 8-0 run, holding the Bobcats scoreless for nearly five minutes.
 
The margin grew to 35-22 with 5:47 left in the first half following two free throws by Pierce.  Lees-McRae pulled to within 40-32, but Francis Marion closed the half with a 10-4 spurt to lead 50-36 at intermission.
 
Two free throws by Pierce to open the second stanza swelled the margin to 16 points at 52-36, but Lees-McRae rallied to trim the deficit to eight points at the 15:38 mark.  FMU gradually stretched its advantage out to 17 points, holding an 80-63 lead after a fast-break lay-in by Cox with 11:18 remaining.
 
The Patriots were held without a bucket for six minutes as the Bobcats cut the margin to 82-76 following a Nico Ashley hook shot with 6:27 left.  The lead was still six, 88-82, at the 2:50 mark.  A three-pointer by Rollins from the left corner, an in-side hoop by Pierce, and a free throw by Rollins pushed the lead back to double figures at 94-84 in the final minute.
 
Francis Marion connected on 44.1 percent of its field goal attempts, including 13-of-30 long-range shots, while hitting 28-of-36 free throws.  Lees-McRae shot 48.6 percent from the floor, including 12-of-28 from behind the arc, and was 12-of-17 at the charity stripe.
 
FMU turned the ball over only 13 times in the fast-paced contest and led 27-18 in points-off-turnovers.

 
 
01/28/23 4:00 pm at Florence, SC
FRANCIS MARION 101, LEES-MCRAE 94
LEES-MCRAE (8-13,4-9 Confere)
Brandon Brown 6-13 6-6 20; Timon Jones 6-9 1-1 18; Nico Ashley 6-10 3-4 15;
Williams Onyeodi 6-12 0-0 12; LJ  Rogers 3-6 1-2 9; Jeremy Golson 3-5 0-0 9;
Sidney Dollar 2-5 1-4 5; Jaylin Stewart 2-9 0-0 4; Gabe Bryant 1-2 0-0 2;
Thomas McIntosh 0-0 0-0 0; Follie Bogan 0-1 0-0 0; Drew Redmond 0-0 0-0 0.
Totals 35-72 12-17 94.
FRANCIS MARION (12-7,9-4 Confere)
Jonah Pierce 8-13 10-13 26; Bryce Beamer 7-12 4-4 23; Tionne Rollins 5-11
3-4 16; Alex Cox 5-14 0-0 12; Farid SaintCyr Jr. 2-12 3-5 9; Nick Silva 2-4
2-4 7; Doug Alves 1-2 4-4 6; Asante Turner 0-0 2-2 2; Austin Harrell 0-0 0-0
0; Adonis Cole 0-0 0-0 0; Darius Jones 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 30-68 28-36 101.
Halftime: Francis Marion 50 Lees-McRae 36
3-point goals--Lees-McRae 12-28 (Timon Jones 5-7; Jeremy Golson 3-5; Brandon
Brown 2-7; LJ  Rogers 2-5; Jaylin Stewart 0-4), Francis Marion 13-30 (Bryce
Beamer 5-8; Tionne Rollins 3-7; Alex Cox 2-6; Farid SaintCyr Jr. 2-7; Nick
Silva 1-2). Fouled out--Lees-McRae-None, Francis Marion-None.
Rebounds--Lees-McRae 37 (Sidney Dollar 5), Francis Marion 41 (Jonah Pierce
14). Assists--Lees-McRae 26 (Sidney Dollar 6), Francis Marion 22 (Alex Cox
6). Total fouls--Lees-McRae 24, Francis Marion 17. Technical
fouls--None. A-502